A Tempting Fate
by Kaguya's Chaos
Summary: Kagome, a wealthy business woman, is persuaded by friends and family to take a vacation from her stressing work. Of course, like everything in life, something goes wrong. Now stranded on a tropical island with two adorable orphans and three of the hottest
1. The Crash

A Tempting Fate

By Kaguya's Chaos

President Kagome Higurashi stared the sweating man down. His bald head already beaded with perspiration. This wasn't due to the sweltering heat outside, because the air-conditioning was working full blast. No…this had to do with the hard glare the business woman before him was sending his way.

"So, your saying that you couldn't send in the money owed to us because of why!"

"uh….um…" The bald man cringed as he thought of his next words and how bad they would make him look. "I uh, gambled it…" He didn't even finish before Kagome had her phone in her hand and demanding that security take the idiot away. The man stood up sputtering away any gibberish that would save his hide.

"B-but! M-miss. Higurashi!"

"I've heard enough of your problems, Mr. Toshiba! My company has backed yours for a year now with no profit. I only asked that you repay what was owed and you tell me that you have GAMBLED it away! This is not acceptable! I have been reasonable and patient! I am finished with this business now remove yourself from this building!" Her angry words ended when two muscled security guards dragged him away. As soon as the doors to her office closed, Kagome sat down in her chair and sighed.

Her fingers came up to rub at the migraine wrecking havoc on her mind. Her tired eyes strayed over to the empty coffee cup on her desk and she sighed again. Just as her head had landed on the desk, the doors burst open and Kagome's secretary came bustling in. "Don't you ever knock, Sango?" Was her irritated question.

Sango snorted and sat down on a corner of her desk. "I haven't since we met in Elementary and I'm not going to start now." She responded before throwing a glossy magazine on her desk. "You made front cover of yet another one. How do you do it?"

Kagome's head shot up as she looked into her own face printed on the cover of the magazine. A large red headline above stated: Most Eligible, Most Deadly. Kagome rolled her eyes and read the lower caption: A look into the life of successful business woman Kagome Higurashi. 'Good grief. Why the hell…' Kagome let the thought drift off as she registered her best friends voice and realized she had tuned her out.

"I'm sorry Sango, what were you saying?"

Sango gave her friend a worried look and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hon, you need a vacation. You have been working non-stop since Hojo left the country. You need a break." Kagome cringed at the sound of her ex-boyfriend's name. "Yeah, well, there have been a lot of reports about stolen funding and materials. I have to-"

"Get your pervert cousin to take care of it! He is the Vice President and yet he barely does anything! He can take care of the problem while you're gone and you can get some rest. Why not go to the Bahamas? Or maybe Jamaica? Hawaii? You should pack your stuff and I can book a flight-" Kagome shook her head. "Sango! I'm not going anywhere, so stop talking like I am! Besides, Miroku would make the company plummet to the ground and we'd go out of business."

"Oh, dear cousin! Such cruel words! I could hold the company together while you were gone!" A violet eyed young man exclaimed as he came bursting into the room. Kagome stared at him and smiled dryly. "Yeah? With what? Tape?" She quipped and smiled at the fake hurt look he flashed to her. Miroku strode over to Sango and hugged her around the waist, kissing the top of her head.

Sango glared at him and pushed him away. "Nuh uh! I'm still angry for you going out with the 'boys' on our anniversary last week." She said while crossing her arms over her chest. Kagome laughed as Miroku tried reasoning with her. Kagome's blue eyes sparkled as she remembered their wedding a year and a week ago. She had been really happy when her two best friends had finally gotten together and "settled" down. She let out a sigh and rubbed at her shoulders as a cramp traveled over them.

"Like I said, Kags, let Miroku take over for a while and go on a vacation! You need a break. We can handle everything." Kagome let her shoulders droop as she thought it over. 'Well, I have been working for a while, and a tan would be nice-wait! Am I actually considering it? Well…' She began to think of clear blue water and hot sand, not to mention a bunch of oiled, muscled, hot men walking on said sand….

"Oh, alright!" She agreed and Sango smiled. "I knew you'd see it my way!"

:XD:

Kagome checked over her suitcase again and made sure she had packed everything. Nodding her head she closed it up and headed for the door. Standing there were Sango and Miroku, both grinning from ear to ear. Within a couple of hours, all three of them were on the landing strip of the private plane heading for Hawaii, saying their good-bye's. Kagome glared at Miroku as she hugged him. "You ruin anything and I will have your head! Call me if you are unsure about ANYTHING! Ok?"

Miroku nodded dutifully and grinned. "Sure cuz'." He said and winked. Sango rolled her eyes and hugged her best friend good-bye. "Call us when you land! And, goddammit! Have a fun time!" She said as the last call for passengers came from the male flight attendant. Kagome nodded her head and ran toward the plane. The minute the door to the plane closed and they couldn't see Kagome anymore their smiles dropped and frowns formed over their faces.

"Miroku?"

"Yeah?"

"I have a bad feeling about this."

"Me too."

"Should we have let her go?"

Miroku stayed silent as they watched the plane leave the ground and became air born, taking their friend on a journey no one would have believed she was about to have.

:CV:

Kagome sat down in her seat and closed her eyes, eager to start her vacation. But, as with every plane ride, there had to be some loud mouthed baby to break the silence. This time, the baby came in the form of a young man with silver hair and amber eyes. Next to the man was another guy that looked somewhat like him. Except he had a sophisticated look and a slightly more intense, golden stare.

"Dammit, Sesshoumaru! I didn't want to come on this godforsaken trip with you! I wanted to stay with Kikyou!" The 'baby' yelled out causing a lot of glares and murmurs from the other passengers.

"Inuyasha. Shut up." The one obviously called Sesshoumaru said quietly as he took out a laptop and began to type away at it. The one called Inuyasha became red in the face and his chest puffed up. "Don't you tell me-"

"Shut up!" Both sets of golden eyes turned to the outside feminine voice and widen in surprised to see who had butted into their conversation. Kagome turned in her seat and glared at the loud-mouth and repeated her words. "Shut up. The rest of us are here for our own reasons and we do not need you to ruin the quiet and peaceful atmosphere with your loud and obnoxious voice." She growled out and was shocked when applause irrupted in the plane. The young man, Inuyasha's, face flushed even more red and he sank in his chair muttering to himself. Kagome turned around again, not noticing the amused expression on the other man, Sesshoumaru's, face.

Kagome reclined in her cushioned chair and closed her eyes once again. Sleep crept up on her and before she knew it, she was in a light doze.

:BN:

Two hours later Kagome was jerked awake by something smashing into her seat from behind. A mumbled "Shit!" Was heard and Kagome turned sleepy confused eyes to see an equally sleepy Inuyasha rubbing his forehead. A snicker to their side made both turn to look at a smirking Sesshoumaru. "The hell are you laughing at!" Inuyasha grumbled and Sesshoumaru's smirk grew.

"You." he said simply and Kagome felt her laughter bubble up as she pieced together what ad happened. Inuyasha had fallen asleep and his head had smashed into her chair. Unable to stifle her giggles anymore, she let them out. Both sun-gold eyes swung to her and Kagome tried to wipe the tears out of her eyes. Inuyasha opened his mouth to say something but was stopped when the plane jerked. Kagome, who didn't have her seatbelt on, went flying out into the isle and into the vacant seat across from her. Her head slammed into the arm rest and a trickle of blood traveled down her forehead and beside her eye. Kagome placed her hand on the open wound and looked around to see others on the floor in the isle like her.

"Are you alright?" Inuyasha asked as he got out of his seat and crouched down beside her. Sesshoumaru also got out and crouched down as well. "Ow. What the hell hap-" Before Kagome could finish the plane jerked again and Kagome went flying into the two men. Sesshoumaru's back collided with Kagome's original seat, bracing Kagome and himself. Inuyasha, unfortunately was flung into his chair with his back being prodded with the armrest.

Kagome closed her eyes tight and hung onto Sesshoumaru's shirt as the plane again jerked violently and a voice came over the intercom. "L-ladies and gentlemen, w-we are experiencing some str- er, turbulence, please don't panic and remain seated. Thank you and- HOLY SHIT! W-WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?"

The intercom ended in a short Fizz sound and Kagome opened wide, fearful eyes. She looked up into Sesshoumaru's impassive gaze and quickly got off of him. Shooting to her seat in time for another shake. Her seat belt clicked into place and her hands gripped the armrests. She ignored the still dripping blood and watched as others scrambled into seats. The jerks of the plane became more violent and the plane started to loose altitude. The nose of the plane dived and Kagome felt her heart leap into her throat. 'Ohshitohshitohshit!' ran through her mind as her eyes squeezed shut. Just as they closed, she felt the impact and then she blacked out.

:ML:

Inuyasha got up from his awkward position on the floor of the plane and quickly sat in his seat as the plane jerked again. He watched as the girl who had yelled at him earlier shot to her own seat after the bizarre announcement and Sesshoumaru also clambered over to his seat. Screams filled the small private plane and the jerking continued. Just as the plane was taking a nose dive Inuyasha found himself thinking of the strange girl in front of him. Her and her bright blue eyes. His next thought was of Sesshoumaru and how he was going to kill him if they got out of this alive. His girlfriend Kikyou never entered his mind.

Sesshoumaru gripped his armrests and grit his teeth. 'That's it. I'm firing Jaken when and if I get out of this mess.'

The plane crashed and judging by the sound, they had hit water, or so both brothers guessed, just before the sides of the plane rippled and tore in a screeching sound of dying metal and broken glass. Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha shut their eyes as water rushed up at them. It was a powerful blow and if it hadn't been for the seatbelts, they would have been ripped from their seats.

Both opened their eyes after the majority of the rushing water and changed air pressure. They paid little attention to the strange sight of floating bubbles and plane craft seats, and tore their seat belts off. Both looked to the girl in front of them, her raven hair floating about her in an inky cloud. Her eyes were closed and air bubbles where escaping her mouth and nose. Both concluded that she had been knocked unconscious and dived to get her out. Sesshoumaru unbuckled her and Inuyasha grabbed a hold of her about the waist. Neither knew why they saved her, but they didn't think about it as they struggled out of the wrecked mess and toward the surface of the water.

Breaking through the water they both gasped in air and looked around wildly for purchase. They found a floating hunk of the wreck and quickly swam toward it, dragging an unresponsive Kagome with them. Both hoisted the girl over the side and onto the thing then themselves. It was a large, sturdy hunk of whatever that easily held their weight.

Registering this and the fact that the girl wasn't breathing, Sesshoumaru knelt over her and gave her mouth to mouth, pumping on her chest to get rid of the water that had entered her lungs. After a few moments of this, the girl finally turned to her side and heaved the water out and gasped for her own air. Meanwhile, Inuyasha had noticed a couple of strugglers come up from the wreck as well. A man, a little boy and a little girl thrashed about in the dark waters. Diving in, Inuyasha grabbed a hold of the kids. The man followed behind him and up onto the piece of….whatever it was. Sesshoumaru had a hold of the now choking girl as the few survivors clambered on board.

Heavy breathing was all the sound there was. The sun beat down on them, mocking the horribly crash with bright rays of light. And the day had started out just fine too…

:change of POV:

Kagome breathed in deeply and clung to her savior. Her midnight black hair hung about her in wet waves and her silk blouse and dress pants clung to body. Shuddering slightly under the gentle breeze, Kagome tried to register what had just happened. Just as it hit her, the sound of sobs reached her ears. Looking up and letting go of her male anchor, Kagome turned to look at two crying children.

"M-mom…D-dad!" they both said in unison and Kagome felt like crying herself. Moving forward a bit, she drew the two towards her and hugged them close. All three broke down crying as it all finally crashed on them. They were lost in the middle of the ocean, the only survivors of a plane crash and many were dead. Including the parents of these two children.

The three males looked to one another and then at the still lightly bubbling crash site. They hadn't lost anyone in the crash and they didn't really care. It seemed cruel, but in this day and age, you only cared for yourself, and that is how it is. They had lived and that was all that really mattered.

Kagome pushed the two still crying children away from her and looked into their pain-ridden faces. "M-my name's Kagome. What's yours?" She asked in an attempt to get the children's minds off of the death of their parents. The little boy with brownish-red hair and green eyes sniffed and answered first. "S-shippo." His little voice wavered and both eyes turned to the little girl. Her own brown hair and brown eyes stared back at them, still wet from crying. "I'm R-rin." She stammered and buried her face into Kagome's wet shirt. Shippo did likewise and Kagome looked up to meet crystal blue eyes.

The man in front of her smiled and adjusted his sitting position. "Hi. I'm Kouga Wolf." He said flashing a grin. Kagome met it with a slight smile of her own. "Kagome Higurashi." She answered softly and watched as his eyes got bigger.

"The Kagome Higurashi? Owner of Shikon Inc.?" Kagome nodded and her smile faded. She turned her eyes toward a movement to her right and watched as the Inuyasha guy from before was staring at her wide-eyed. Before he or the other silver-haired man could say anything, she turned to them a smiled. "Thanks for saving me." She said to both of them. Sesshoumaru nodded his head and continued to stare at the horizon and Inuyasha gave a "Feh." and looked away, crossing his arms over his chest.

'I have a feeling this is going to be worse then I thought.' Kagome said to herself as she adjusted her hold on the now sleeping children.

:AN:

This, my friends was the horrible beginning to an idea I have had in my head for the longest time. I don't know what to think of this chapter, only to say that it will get longer and better promise! I only scrambled to get this bit done so that I could get to the interesting stuff. I won't go out and tell you straight out everyone's life story, I'll probably integrate it into the story as I go on.

I hope everyone who reads this reviews….even if it's only to flame. It may make me cry but it will at least give me a feeling of where this stands. So please, out of the kindness in your hearts, READ AND REVIEW!


	2. The Sharks

A Tempting Fate

Chapter Two

By Kaguya's Chaos

Kagome sighed as she stared up into the endless expanse of starry sky. Her sapphire orbs glistened as she delighted n the fact that she could see the stars so clearly, now that she was away from the smoggy city. But, no matter how she found excitement at the clear sky, she couldn't get over the fact that she was stranded with a bunch of childish morons, excluding the children.

Her face turned red in anger at the memory of the day, or rather evening, after everyone had introduced themselves and settled down on this hunk of metal flotsam that allowed them to float on the water. The children had stayed in a sleep-like state the whole time, apparently worn out and trying to repair their emotional trauma from earlier, through said sleep. They of course, didn't hear the idiotic arguments.

:flashback:

"So, your like, this major rich chick, right?" The ever so 'smart' Kouga asked as he ogled the way Kagome's clothes stuck to her body. 'Pervert.' Was her brief thought as she nodded. Beside her, Inuyasha let out another of his now famous, "Feh"s. Sesshoumaru remained quiet and yet he couldn't quite keep the warning growl from entering his throat. It rumbled out lowly and the only one's who heard it were Inuyasha and Kouga. Both looked to the silver-haired business man and smirked.

So it was going to be like that, huh? Between the three there was a flaring challenge, and Kagome remained blissfully unaware of it. The rest of the afternoon proved to be the same, as Inuyasha and Kouga bickered back and forth and Sesshoumaru remained a silent statue, looking over the damn horizon as if waiting for a ship to pull right up.

'If only we had that kind of luck!' Kagome moaned in her mind as she again yelled at the two men to "shut the hell up!" Jeez…this is going to be one long nightmare.

:End Flashback:

So here lay Kagome with two snoozing children on either of her sides, a stoic Sesshoumaru on her left also laying down, Inuyasha on her right sitting up and staring into nothing, and Kouga at her feet who was staring at her. Rolling her eyes and deciding to ignore the lecherous idiot, she fell into a dreamless sleep.

Sesshoumaru's eyes opened the minute he was sure she was asleep. As he sat up he was met with a growl of irritation. "Damn, I thought she'd never fall asleep!" Inuyasha muttered as he let out a breath of relief. As the air rushed from him, so too did the human appearance he had maintained. Silvery dog ears perched on top of his head and his hands became claws. Across from him Kouga changed too.

His eyes became more primal and his ears tipped up into what most humans would describe as elf-like. His dark hair became less tamed and his bare feet became slightly clawed. His hands grew long claws and a tail sprang from behind him. Beside him Sesshoumaru let out a disdained sniff and his own appearance changed.

His height increased and his hair became a lighter shade of platinum, growing past his waist. His ears tipped at the top like Kouga's and his hands changed into deadly delicate claws. His face, unlike the other two, grew maroon markings and on his forehead shadowed a deep purple-ish blue crescent moon, showing his standing in youkai society. Maroon stripes also attached themselves to his wrists and a tail appeared over his shoulder. In the bright moonlight he was clearly a striking figure to behold. (Too bad Kagome's asleep through this whole thing, huh?)

Kouga glared at the obviously proud Taiyoukai. 'Heh, stupid pretty boy!' He growled to himself as Sesshoumaru smirked back. Inuyasha bit off his own growl as he too glared at his half-brother. Ignoring the two other youkai, Sesshoumaru turned his attention to the blue-eyed girl who had caught his attention earlier.

Her long raven hair spilled about her heart-shaped face, bringing out the pale silky look of her skin under the moon's loving beams. She had captured his attention the minute she had turned to glare and yell at Inuyasha. Showering both brothers with her unusual scent. The smell of jasmines and juniper caused both to stare in shock.

Inuyasha admitted to himself, that no human had ever smiled like that before, not even Kikyou smelled half as good. Not that he would ever say that out loud. Kouga, on his part couldn't get enough of her smell. At first, he thought it was the breeze from an island that caused the smell, but as he focused on it, he realized that it came from the human woman, snuggled close to the inu and two children.

Sesshoumaru brought himself out of his musings as the girl, Kagome, moved in her sleep and brought the two children closer to her. He smiled a fleeting half smile before correcting himself and unwrapped his tail to drape over her. She let out a smile and snuggled closer. Lost in his own thoughts once again, the Taiyoukai was dragged out of them when an agitated growl reached his sensitive ears from both sides of him.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? Get your tail off of her, jackass!" Inuyasha nearly shouted and Kouga growled again. Sesshoumaru smirked and raised an eyebrow. "Don't you already have your own bitch, Inuyasha? Why would you care about this one?" He taunted and his smirk widened as Inuyasha just growled in answer.

Kouga, of course, was a different matter as he restated the hanyou's demand. "Get your filthy tail off of her." At this point Kagome moved once more and groaned, earning herself the stares of all males. They stiffened and held their breath, hoping she wouldn't wake up. Instead they were greeted with her groggy voice.

"Dammit, Souta. Stop it!" She muttered before falling asleep again. All three males glared at that statement and blinked. 'Who the hell is Souta!' Was the dominant thought in all of their heads.

:DF:

Kagome opened her bleary eyes and groaned as she remembered where she was and why her clothes felt stiff, due to the salt of the sea. They had been on the floating war zone, aptly named because of the two hot-headed males she was forced to listen to, for about two days now. Hunger had raptly set in and the two adorable kids stuck there without their parents, quickly made it known.

"Kagome-neechan?" Rin asked as she snuggled closer to the older girl. Kagome looked down at her and rubbed her bleary eyes.

"Yes Rin-chan?"

"When are we going to…"

"Get back to dry land? I don't know, sweetie."

"Oh. Um…I…" At this Rin leaned closer and a slight blush stained her cheeks. Kagome leaned down and allowed the little girl to whisper in her ear. "I have to go potty." Kagome's eyes widened and she too realized their predicament. She too had to pee and for a while too. Oh dear…

Kagome turned to the males in their little party and glared. 'Lucky bastards.' She thought as she watched them. They were able to just stand up and pee over the side, without having to…you know. She looked into the cold water and shuddered over the fact that it was either dive in and go to the bathroom that way or…embarrass herself.

She looked to Rin and realized the girl knew what they had to do too. Together their eyes turned to the water and their faces heated up in embarrassment at the thought of what they were going to have to do. 'Oh, Lord.' Rin turned her head back to Kagome and a look of desperation crossed her face. Well, they were going to have to…but the thought racing through her mind was to either take off her pants or not…

Shippo, having been privy to the conversation had turned bright red as well, seeing as he too realized just what the girls were going to have to do. He turned his head to the older males and realized they were looking over at Kagome in confusion, turning back, Shippo realized why. Kagome was now standing with a determined look on her face, staring at the water.

Rin stood up to and grabbed the older woman's hand. Kagome turned her face to the guys and felt it heat up. Without saying anything to their confused silent question, Kagome stripped off her pants and stood there with nothing but her blouse and her underwear covering her. Kouga's and Inuyasha's mouths dropped open and Sesshoumaru's eyes widened. Taking a hold of Rin's hand she turned to the eight year old girl and nodded.

Before anyone could react, both females leapt over the side and into the water. Kouga and Inuyasha jumped up and over to the side, thinking both had gone mental. Their heads resurfaced and both were grinning sheepishly. Inuyasha was the first to say anything.

"What the fuck are you doing!" he yelled out and Kagome just smiled slightly. "We wanted to go swimming." She said simply and swam closer to the drifting hunk of metal. She heft Rin up and over the edge, just as she was about to leap over the side herself, she felt something brush against her leg. Her whole body stiffened as the thing brushed against her again.

Trying not to panic, she looked down at the water and let out a scream when she saw exactly what was brushing against her. There, barely seen under the waves, was a whole school of sharks. Her heart leapt into her throat and she barely registered the shouts coming from those on the make-shift boat. Trying not to draw attention to herself, she swam closer to the floating boat and tried to heft herself up. Just as she had gotten half up with the help of numerous hands, her leg scratched against a jagged edge of the boat and blood streamed down into the water. She let out a shout of pain and nearly fell back in.

The blood colored the water and drew the attention of the sharks. Turning around, mid-swim, they came at her with a vengeance. She was pulled onto the boat just as a shark had rushed at her previous place. Scared beyond words, filled with immense pain, and completely tired, Kagome let out a cry of relief. She barely felt the two small bodies grasping onto her or heard the shouts from Kouga and Inuyasha. She did, however felt when Sesshoumaru inspected her leg wound.

Letting out a hiss of pain, she stared down at the wound herself. It was long and seemed to be pretty deep. Blood splashed out of the torn skin and trailed over the edge of the floating piece of junk and into the water. It attracted the sharks and drew their attention to the floating hunk. Kagome's head grew fuzzy due to blood loss and pain.

Too far gone, she didn't notice when Sesshoumaru's eyes tainted pink and became narrowed. She also didn't notice the nails on Inuyasha's hand lengthening as he held her shoulders. She didn't see Kouga's eyes become darker and she didn't notice Rin and Shippo stiffening in her slackening embrace. With a final groan of pain, Kagome fainted from the world, hoping this wouldn't be the last time she got to see it.

:WTF:

Sesshoumaru stared down at the wound, trying not to notice the enticing smell it produced or the way his inner youkai demanded to taste said blood. He tried to evaluate the damage and what could be done about it. He did, however notice the way the other two grown males reacted to the scent of the metallic blood. Stifling a growl at the slight arousal he found in both of their scents, not to mention his own, he delicately prodded the torn flesh.

This was a mistake. Blood rushed from it anew and only the whimpers from the two children kept Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha and Kouga from leaping at it.

Rin looked to the girl she considered her new sister and let out a soft sob. Blood had quickly rushed from the wound and it seemed this white-haired youkai only made it worse. Yes, she knew he was youkai. They all were except for Kagome. Shippo and her were kitsune. Brother and sister. Rin knew the two silver haired inu-youkai were brothers and that the other one was a wolf.

Shippo wrapped his arms around his younger sister and held back his own tears. True, they had only known the human for a grand-total of two days, but they felt like she was family. With resolute eyes, Shippo turned to Sesshoumaru.

"You have to lick the wound to close it up." He stated in a small voice, "You should have healing stuff in your saliva, right? M-my dad always said that inu-youkai did." The startled eyes of the Taiyoukai met his own before he nodded and bent down over the wound.

Sesshoumaru let go of his control over the desire to taste the blood. His tongue swept over the wound and he suppressed a groan. Inuyasha stiffened and growled as did Kouga. Both hated the fact that it was Sesshoumaru who got the first taste of her.

Kagome stiffened and tried to thrash around, announcing the pain she felt. Inuyasha kept a hold of one of her arms and Kouga held the other. Rin and Shippo sat on her abdomen, keeping her virtually still. Sesshoumaru finished licking the blood off and sat back as the saliva became a coagulant, stooping the blood and semi-healing the wound.

Kouga tore off a part of his shirt and offered it as a bandage. Inuyasha had done the same and both glared at the other. Sesshoumaru dismissed both of them and used his own shirt, smirking when his scent lingered on her. 'I think I like the way my scent mix's with hers.' He grinned to himself and ignored the heated glares the other two sent him.

Just as Sesshoumaru was about to pick her up and deposit her in his lap, she was lifted and held in Kouga's. Rin and Shippo sat by and watched as the adults fought over their new friend. Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha growled and Kouga grinned as Kagome turned over in her sleep to grip onto his shirt. Kouga snuggled her closer and gave both inu a look of superiority.

Rin looked to Shippo and both sighed. It was indeed going to be a long…whatever you wanted to call this. Both looked to their still ashen-faced friend and remembered their own parents, just before the crash. Their father had buckled them in and told them under no circumstances were they to leave each other. Not really understanding this, and afraid of the jerking motions of the plane, both nodded quickly.

Shippo had grabbed onto Rin's hand and they watched as their father stumbled over to their mother. As he seated himself, both kitsune turned to their beautiful children and smiled a warm, loving smile. That was the last thing either saw of their parents, because the plane had just decided to crash into the water.

As the cold water blew over them, Shippo turned and used half of his body to shield Rin of the powerful force and closed his eyes. Rin grabbed a hold of his shirt and clung to him tightly. When the water stopped rushing passed them as much, Shippo opened his eyes and turned to look at where his parents were supposed to see.

What he saw would haunt him for the rest of his life. His mother was peaceful looking, holding onto his father. But his father, had a metal pole, the one from the door that served as a railing, impaled through his chest. Dark red blood billowed about them in thick clouds. Upon closer inspection, Shippo would have seen that his mothers neck had been broken, but not wanting to see anymore, he turned to Rin and yanked her out of her seat. He kept his body in front of her blocking their dead parents from view, protecting her from seeing the horrible sight.

And even though he tried, he couldn't keep her from seeing. Her eyes widened as she caught sight of the blood and knew her parents were dead. All of this was done in a matter of seconds and the children were running out of air. Keeping their breaking hearts from stopping them from swimming, they reached the surface and gasped for air.

The rest was a blur, ending with the warm embrace of a sapphire eyed woman named Kagome. Now said woman was wounded and in trouble of dying herself. Tears once again welled up in the kids eyes as they crawled over to the girl. Not even caring what the wolf said, they crawled into his arms and rested on Kagome, hugging her for all they were worth. Because to them, she was their last remaining family.

Though they had known her for such a short amount of time, their bond with her had grown quickly. Cause you know what they say. Bonds of love form quicker in the face of a tragedy.

:RD:

Kagome once again opened her bleary eyes as she took in the fact that she felt utterly suffocated. 'What happened? Where am I? Whose on me?' She looked down and her eyes softened as she took in the fact that Rin and Shippo were clutching to her like two lost puppies. And perhaps they were. She smiled and went to lift her hand but found it restrained by a pair of arms, held tightly around her.

Turning her head, Kagome stared in surprise to see Kouga's handsome face lax in sleep. 'Handsome! What the hell are you thinking, Kagome!' She slid her blue gaze over his features and admitted to herself that he was attractive….for a pervert. She turned her face back to his arms and tried to unlink them so she could sit up. A low growl and the tightening of said arms was her reward.

'Did he just…growl?' She asked herself quietly as she again tried to sit up. When she produced no results, she gave up and stared down onto the sleeping children. They looked so peaceful. 'Poor guys. Losing their parents.' She sighed. 'I just hope they will be able to recover from it fully. They were so-' Her thoughts cut off as a cold nose found itself placed against her neck.

Startled by the sudden contact and unable to stop herself she let out a squeal. This provided instant results. Rin and Shippo sat up sharply, breaking Kouga's hold on Kagome. Kagome shot out of his arms and nearly fell into Inuyasha's arms. Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru had also shot to their feet and Kouga was stuck on the ground with two confused kits on his stomach. Kagome sat down and blinked a couple of times.

Her hand fluttered over her leg and stopped when it touched the oddly wrapped bandage. She looked at it blankly before her memory came back to her with startling clarity. The sharks, the jagged edge of the boat thingy, and then passing out. 'But who had-' Her thoughts cut off as she realized the bandage was bark blue, the same color as Sesshoumaru's shirt.

She looked over at him to see that one of his sleeves was indeed gone. Strangely enough, so were one of Kouga's and Inuyasha's. "What happened?" Inuyasha demanded as he regained his bearing's and realized that he had actually fallen asleep last night. Sesshoumaru turned cold eyes to Kouga to see him just as confused as the rest of them. As one, they all turned to Kagome, to see her staring at the horizon behind them in a sort of demented happy-shocked look.

Before any of them could turn to see what she was staring at, they heard her whisper, "Land!" There eyes met a tropical looking island with trees up by the beach. It looked absolutely gorgeous. But something felt off about it. Maybe it had something to do with the strange crucified skeleton near the water.

:AN:

Hey ya'll! Done with the second chapter, aren't you happy? Thank goodness it's spring break! I have more time to stay up to ungodly hours of the night to torture my brain by thinking of intelligent things to write down on this story! Yay! No, seriously, I love to write and I am a night owl anyway! Thank you to all who reviewed, I have just now checked my email and I will send my love to you right away!

Anywho, you know the standard procedure! READ, REVIEW and RATE! Thank you and have a pleasant day/night. Whenever you read this!


	3. The Island

A Tempting Fate

Chapter Three

By Kaguya's Chaos

Kagome stood on the floating metal staring at the tropical island in slight fear. She had been the last to tell what the dark brown blob on the beach was, but when she saw it, she felt slightly sick. 'Maybe it's a prop?' She begged to herself as she took in a deep breath. Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha and Kouga exchanged grim looks and nodded their heads in unison.

"We're going ashore first, to make sure it's safe. Kagome, stay here and keep the brats close." Inuyasha stated and Kagome could only nod. There was, without a doubt, something on this island. Because no man would be able to stick himself to a huge tree limb in the shape of a cross and then jam it in the sand of the beach. "Be careful." Was her response to the command as the barge came onto the land.

It was a beautiful morning. Ones that were advertised in pamphlets all around the world. Gorgeous blue skies, not a cloud in sight. Crystal clear water over-looking a lively reef surrounding a soft grainy sand. The small cries of the few gulls nearby and the seas breeze called out to the passerby to take a seat and relax for a while. Truly spectacular.

The island itself was a piece of work. Looking like the typical rainforest like tropical paradise. But like the saying goes, there is always trouble in paradise. Kagome gripped onto the enraptured children as they awaited the grown men to come back. Rin wiggled a bit but didn't move far away from Kagome. Shippo, however left her reach and sat on the beach staring at the water, brooding. Kagome knew he was thinking of his parents and felt helpless over the fact. What could she do?

"Hey…You guys wanna look along the beach?" Kagome asked standing up. She turned toward the opposite side of the beach where the dead guy was and cringed. 'Not that way.' She turned around and smiled at the two. They smiled briefly back and agreed to 'accompany' Kagome in exploring. "We have to make sure you stay safe!" Rin said as she grinned at Kagome's raised eyebrow.

"Oh yes, you must come to keep me protected!" Kagome shrieked as she swooped down on Shippo and tickled him. Rin, not wanting to be left out, tackled Kagome. Before Rin and Shippo could both team up on her, however, Kagome jumped to her feet and went sprinting down the beach, laughing. The two kids grinned evilly and followed. Each of them loved a good chase.

As the three of them played around, and the three males searched the inland of the island for danger, none of them noticed the piercing eyes watching them. Or the amused smirk of said watcher as s/he decided that the next few days would prove to be quite eventful. After all, nothing interesting had come to this island in the many years that s/he had been imprisoned here. Nothing since the fateful explorer Midoriko and her companions, anyway.

:BTTS:

Kagome collapsed on the warm sand and sighed in frustration. It was taking everything in her to remain a good girl and stay on the beach as promised. She looked over to her left and ignored the gnawing hunger clawing at her insides. Rin sat on the sand next to her, with her feet out-stretched before the waves, giggling every time they came into contact with her toes. Shippo sat on the metal home they had previously been floating in. His feet hung over the side as he watched the curious fish race to his feet and then away as he moved.

Kagome returned her attention to the sky and frowned as she realized it must have been about two in the afternoon. She groaned along with her stomach as she thought about how hungry she was. She sat up quickly and glared at the tree line behind her. 'That's it! If they don't come back real soon…I'll go in there and find something edible!' She sighed and fell back down.

Her and the children had found a fresh water stream feeding into the ocean by the beach and they had traveled farther inland to drink form it. Now all they were missing was the guys and food. Rin had offered to catch fish, but after the third failed attempt had given up on it and Kagome said they should wait for the other's return.

'If I'd have known they would have taken this long, I would have said screw them and lets try to catch those fish!' Kagome turned to look over at Shippo and the boy seemed to read her mind. He grinned and stood up. "Don't worry! I'll catch the fish! You two start a fire!" He said and leapt into the water.

"Be careful, Shippo!" Kagome called out as she remembered the sharks and thanked the Gods for the fact that the water was too shallow for them to get him. Kagome jumped to her feet and held out a hand to Rin. "Let's get some wood and start a fire, ok?" Rin grinned and both set about collecting branches and anything else that looked flammable near the shore.

Half an hour later found the three of them seated around a blazing fire, roasting the weirdest looking fish they had ever seen. "What do you think that one's called?" Kagome asked, indicating the one on the farthest right. Shippo looked at the yellow spine-y fish with blue spots and shrugged. "Spotted banana?" All three groaned at the mention of the food.

"No! Blue spotted lion fish!" Rin said in a superior tone as she stared at the misunderstood fish. Kagome smiled at them and shook her head. "Ok…how about that one?" This time she pointed to the red and orange fish on her left. And so the game continued until the fish lost their color due to the flames and they were ready to be eaten.

It was just before sunset when they finished off the fish and the boys came out of the jungle and onto the beach. Inuyasha and Kouga stared at the fish bones in disbelief. "You ate already!" Was the first intelligent question out of Inuyasha's mouth. Kagome rolled her eyes and felt the urge to say, "No! They washed up this far on shore right next to our fire!" But she held her tongue and let the kids answer.

"Duh! We were hungry and we couldn't wait for you to come back any more! What took you so long anyway? Did you find anything interesting?" Shippo stopped to take a breath and Rin picked up the slack.

" Are there any mountains here? Did you find any scary caves? Or any waterfalls? How about a field of flowers?" Kagome put hand over both of their mouths and grinned. "Well? What does it look like farther inland?"

Inuyasha and Kouga exchanged serious glances. "There is a small clearing a little farther inland that would better serve our purposes for the night." Sesshoumaru answered in a rather icy voice and Kagome blinked in confusion. 'Sheesh. What crawled up his ass and died?' She wondered to herself as she stood with the rest and put out the dying fire.

:GYYR:

Kagome groaned as they finally reached this clearing a "little farther inland". 'Heh! Yeah right! More like four miles inland! It's already pitch black and I can't see anything other then what the moon light will allow!' Kagome ranted in her head as she stared up into the sliver of the moon in the inky sky. Her shoulders drooped as exhaustion set in and her leg throbbed with pain. She had forgotten all about her wound and it seemed to want to haunt her for it with a vengeance.

Inuyasha and Kouga went about setting up camp, arguing about this or that. Rin and Shippo collected wood from around the clearing and Sesshoumaru walked slowly over to Kagome. The scent of blood suddenly hit all of them and they turned to the source.

Kagome slowly peeled the makeshift bandage off of her leg and winced as it seemed to reopen. At least part of the way, anyway. Small rivulets of crimson blood streamed down her leg and dripped onto the ground. At some point in this hellish scenario, she had lost her shoes and now was bare foot. 'Just another atrocity to add to the growing list.' She thought wryly as she poked the wound.

She hissed in a breath and looked away in pain. Take deep breaths to calm herself down from crying, Kagome realized that the camp had suddenly gone very quiet. Slowly looking up she watched as Sesshoumaru bent down and lifted her foot from the ground. "You've reopened the wound." He stated in a slightly deeper voice and Kagome cocked an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah, that's what happens when you walk for hours on end." She replied sarcastically and watched as he brought a hand up and wiped away a small trickle of blood. Kagome suddenly felt nervous and jerked her foot back. "Um…I need some w-water to…er, clean it up." She said out loud while her thoughts raced through her mind. 'What the hell was that?' She asked herself as she watched Sesshoumaru stand up again.

He walked over to the edge of the clearing and into the darkness, in search of water for her, she supposed. Shrugging she turned to see the rest of her companions staring at her.

"What?"

:WSAM:

Sango stared into the television like it was a lifeline as silent tears tracked down her face. Beside her Miroku clasped her hands and fought tears of his own. A broadcasting of a private airline crashing into the ocean was what held their horrified attention. Pictures of the crash site and of the passengers flashed across the screen as the reporter announced the cause of the crash and the methods of the search and rescue team to get the airplane out of the water.

"There is still no confirmation on whether or not any of the passengers have made it out of the plane and it is estimated that there were no survivors. On the plane was Billionaire Kit Saotoshi , his wife Yuki and there two children, Rin and Shippo Saotoshi, ages 8 and 10. The Taisho Corp. president and vice president, Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha West, were also on board, as well as Miss Kagome Higurashi of Shikon Inc."

At the mention of Kagome's name, Sango let out a sob and jammed her face into her newly freed hands. "Oh, Miroku! It's all my fault! I told her to go on that damn flight and now she's dead! What kind of friend am I!" She cried out as her tears refused to stop. Miroku placed a hand on her back and whispered soothing words while tears sparkled in his own eyes.

Memories of when Kagome and he were younger and in school flashed through his mind.

"_**Come on, Miroku! You'll like her! Her name is Sango! Just be nice, ok?"**_

"_**Miroku! How many times do I have to tell you not to grab Sango's butt!"**_

"_**Hey, Miroku? Can I live with you? I don't want to go to a foster home."**_

"_**Miroku! Just ask her to marry you! Jeez! She's been waiting all this time, now grow some balls and ask her!"**_

" _**Nervous already? The ceremony hasn't even started! You look great, Miroku, so stop worrying."**_

"_**Miroku? Sango? Take care of each other…alright?"**_

The memories ended with a picture of Kagome's smile as she boarded the damn plane and left. Miroku wiped the stupid tears now trailing down his own face and got up to answer the phone. "Hello?" He asked in a shaky and weak voice. He coughed to get rid of the tone and tried again. "Hello?" The voice on the other end caused him to clench his fist in anger.

"Is…is Kagome really gone?"

Miroku grit his teeth and fought the urge to growl into the receiver. "How the hell did you get this phone number, Hojo?" He whispered in a deceptively calm voice. The young man on the other end of the phone took his time in answering and even then it wasn't an answer to the question. "So…she was on that plane?" His voice seemed to give out on him and Miroku tried to calm himself down.

Sango, hearing the deadly tone in her husbands voice came over to the kitchen where he stood with the phone. A question was clearly posted on her red tear-stained face. "You have no right to even speak her name you low level piece of trash. If you EVER call this number again I will have no problem with hunting you down and castrating you like I should have done when you left Kagome at the alter like that." Miroku shouted into the phone and slammed it down on the counter.

Sango's eyes filled with tears, both angry and sad at the same time. "It was that Hobo guy again…wasn't it? How did he get our number?" Sango asked as she fought the tears down and tried to remain coherent. Miroku sighed and pulled her into his arms and offered her a shoulder to cry on. Sango didn't need to be prompted and immediately fell to sobbing once again. Miroku fought back his own tears and silently asked God why he took their Kagome.

:WTF:

Hojo Masaru (made up a last name…:P) stared down at the phone with a bitter expression on his face. His brown orbs glittered with rage and hatred. 'Damn Miroku Higurashi! I always hated that bastard!' He thought angrily and then let it all go in a breath. His thoughts became saddened once again as he thought of the reason why he had called the man in the first place. The whole reason why he went to so much trouble to find the damn number.

Kagome.

He had made a mistake, he admitted. He had left the best thing in his life for a woman he thought he cared for. He cringed as he corrected himself mentally. 'No. I stranded her at the alter on our wedding day for a road-side whore I thought I loved.' His thoughts tinged with grief as he realized the woman he loved may be dead and buried in a ton of steel under the ocean's waves.

'I depressed her so much she went out in search for thrilling things to do, in the hopes of ending her life!' He thought to himself as he let out a few dramatic tears. (this is classic…the bastard thinks she crashed the plane cause she stilled loved his dumb ass…) He turned up the volume of the television he was watching in his apartment building. The plane crash was on the news yet again, this time, the plane had been brought to the surface.

"It is with heavy hearts that the metal tin can that once resembled a plane is torn open in the effort to find out how many are dead and if any survived. We are saddened to report that Mr. Saotoshi and his wife are among those more brutally murdered. It is an awful sight indeed, folks."

Hojo watched with a sick fascination as the plane was ripped open from the side and the gruesome depiction of dead bodies and water puddles mixed with blood appeared on the screen. The brief scene of a red haired man with a pole through his chest holding a brown haired woman caught his attention for a few seconds before he caught the whispered words of the reporter.

"It seems, ladies and gentlemen, that the bodies of Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru West, Rin and Shippo Saotoshi, a Mr. Kouga Wolf and Miss. Kagome Higurashi are not within the craft. Could they have been ripped from the plane? Or did they survive? We will have another update in an hour. Janet?"

"Thank you Cassidy-"

Hojo shut the set off and stared into the blank screen for a while. She was alive, he knew she was. Picking up the phone on his table next to his chair he dialed a well known phone number.

"Hello? My I speak to a Mr. Onigumo Price, please?"

Waiting for a while in silence, Hojo perked up as the familiar baritone voice filled his ears.

"Ah, yes, Mr. Price! I am calling in on that favor you we me."

He paused as a few words were muttered on the other end. A grim smile lit Hojo's features and his eyes darkened considerably.

"I need you to send a team to the Mid-Atlantic. I'm going to need some help searching for a Miss. Kagome Higurashi."

Another pause.

"Yes, the one in the plane crash. Why? Because, she belongs to me, and I intend on keeping her that way. In my safe embrace once again." (freak!)

:HOLYMOLEY:

Kagome turned in her sleep and tried to stop the cold chills racing down her spine. 'Ugh…someone must be thinking about me.' Was her last coherent thought before she welcomed the deep abyss that promised her a respite from her, once normal and now insane, life. As her breathing deepened and her mind settled into blissful sleep, Inuyasha Kouga and Sesshoumaru turned their intense gazes on a nervous pair of concealed kitsune.

"So tell me, Shippo, was it? How the hell do you know about youkai?" Inuyasha eloquently asked as he glared down at the two children. Rin looked down at the ground and Shippo glared back defiantly. "Because I am a kitsune, jerk!" He said with a heated whisper, not wanting too wake Kagome. Which would have been nearly impossible…but they didn't know that.

This statement cause the older youki to raise their eyebrows and stare at the two kits in doubt. Rin shifted again and the salt smell of her tears reached their noses. Before anything could be said or done, Kagome, in a full, dead on sleep, rolled over and gathered the girl into her arms snuggling her close.

Rin immediately calmed down and snuggled closer, trying to hide in Kagome's soft scent. Shippo watched this with a soft gaze then turned to glare at the older males. "Rin, my mom, my dad and I are kitsune. We had special concealing spells put on us before we…got on the plane."

"Why special?" Kouga asked. He was a detective and didn't like the fact that details could be missing from a story. Shippo grimaced and glanced over to make sure that Rin was asleep before continuing. "It all started when…."

:Flashback, yay:

Shippo stood at the foot of the large staircase leading upstairs. His bored emerald eyes took in the crystal chandelier above his head and groaned. "C'mon Rin! I wanna go play before we have to leave!" He shouted and was met with a flustered looking Rin running down the stairs. "Sorry! I had to go potty!" She said in a huff scowling at him.

"Well, lets go!" Shippo growled out as his small clawed hand reached for Rin's. Both children had adorable tails. Rin's was a dark brown with a reddish tip and Shippo's was a brownish red. They both had brilliant emerald eyes and small elf-like ears. Shippo's hair was the same color as his tail and Rin's hair was darker then her tail. Both were the cutest youkai…

Anyway, just as Shippo had turned to head toward the back door leading to the gardens, the doorbell rang. Both froze on the spot as their parents came out of the study door to the right. They all wore confused expressions cause no one ever came to their door, without first being checked by security. Shippo's dad turned to his wife and she went to the kids and ushered them into the study. All three watched through a crack in the door as their father answered the door.

An old woman stood in the doorway. Her wrinkled face set into grim lines. She looked at Mr. Saotoshi (the father) and then passed him to the crack in the door. Her eyes were a hard granite gray color and her frizzy white hair made her look crazy. Shippo shuddered and looked away.

"Mr. Saotoshi, I come with a warning in mind. Like the night of the blood moon a new tragedy shall befall. May you be prepared. Your kits will be in safe hands." She warned in a gruff voice. Mr. Saotoshi straightened where he was. "E-excuse me?" He demanded but, just as the woman appeared, so too did she vanish.

The study door burst open and both Rin and Shippo launched themselves at their father. Mrs. Saotoshi looked to her husband and their eyes met. A look of understanding passed between them. They both nodded and set the children on the ground between them. "We're going to put a concealing spell on you two, and I need you to listen very closely, ok? This isn't the usual one that will go away with time. This one your going to have to break yourself when the time is right, ok?"

Rin nodded and tilted her head to the side in confusion. "How do we break it?" She asked, somewhat fearing what the answer will be. Mrs. Saotoshi smiled and knelt in front of her two children. "You will know how and when." She said with a strange, watery smile and stood back up.

:End Flashback:

Shippo finished his brief tale and stifled the tears that came up with the memories. Inuyasha and Kouga sat staring at the kit with shock and Sesshoumaru was gazing up at the moon with narrowed eyes. Kagome shifted slightly and Rin let out a soft mewl, shifting as close as she could to Kagome.

All the males watched this with a brief sense of protectiveness. Inuyasha 'Feh'd' and Kouga closed his eyes, leaning against the bark of the tree at his back. Sesshoumaru also closed his eyes but again tried to sort through his mess of thoughts. All day he had asked himself why he was acting so strangely toward a human female and had decided the best course of action would be to distance himself from her as much as possible, and oh boy was it harder then he thought it would be. When he had smelt her blood again, he almost lost control. 'What is wrong with me! It must be because it is so close to mating season.' Sesshoumaru concluded as he stared up at the sinking moon.

Kouga, meanwhile, was thinking of the strange ruins he had found on the eastern side of the island. They were strange circular temple looking ruins without roofs or windows. The only thing that looked remotely familiar about them were the arched doorways. Truly a mystery…

With a shrug Kouga decided to tell the others about it in the morning. After all, they'd still be there the next day, right? It's not like they could get up and walk away or anything, right? Unfortunately for our young idio- I mean wolf, this was not right.

:Up and at 'em:

Kagome groaned as she sat down on the boulder beside her. "Where did you say these weird ruins were, Kouga?" She asked for the fifth time in an angry voice. Angry that she had to walk for hours with no rest, no food, no water and no damn pain-killers! Rin and Shippo plopped down next to her.

All of them were wearing shorts…well, cut off pants made into shorts anyway. The humid air and rising heat caused Kagome to become desperate so she cut the legs off of her pants using a pocket knife she had miraculously managed to hold onto. Rin and Shippo had quickly asked for the same done to theirs, as had Kouga and Inuyasha. Sesshoumaru hadn't asked, but it was done t his as well. Kagome had rolled up her shirt sleeves and undone the buttons in the front, only to tie them around to allow more air to touch her skin.

With a slight giggle, she realized she must have looked like one of those American hillbillies. She had also tied her hair up with a strip of cloth from her pants, doing the same for Rin and to a reluctant Shippo. "Now I look like a little girl!" He had muttered darkly as Kagome had twisted his long hair up into a high ponytail. "You do not!" Kagome argued back and smiled when she had finished.

The guys, on the other hand, had made themselves look even more tempting then before. Each had tied their long hair into low ponytails and had taken off their shirts. Inuyasha and Kouga had tied their shirts around their waists. Kagome had no idea WHAT had happened to Sesshoumaru's shirt, but she wasn't complaining. 'Well, I did want go on this vacation to see hot guys running around half naked…bad Kagome, bad!' She thought to herself as she peeled her eyes off of their striking forms and had turned away. Unfortunately, all three had caught her appreciative glances and their ego's swelled.

That had been the moment a cocky Kouga had announced his findings. So here they were, in an abandoned clearing…with nothing. Kagome felt her right eye tick and sighed. 'Dammit, I'm already stressed enough!' She screamed in her head before deflating and sliding down to sit on the ground. Kouga, Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru were arguing over the fact that Kouga was an idiot and had gotten them lost, as if they weren't already, and Rin and Shippo had taken to watching them from the sidelines.

No one noticed when Kagome stiffened and turned her head to stare at something in the tree behind her. They didn't notice the dark figure land on the boulder Kagome had been on and pick Kagome off of the ground, knocking her out by pressing a pressure point. They didn't notice, that is, until a deep dark voice filled the clearing and their ears.

"Well, well, well. What have we here?" The dark figure whispered and all eyes shot to the obviously youkai being holding their Kagome rather close.

"Who the hell are you! Put Kagome down!" Inuyasha and Kouga yelled out in unison. Sesshoumaru took a small step forward and the dark figure chuckled. "Don't take another step, Taiyoukai." The male figure murmured as he placed a clawed hand underneath Kagome's chin to rest right where her jugular vain lay.

No one moved as they awaited the youkai's move first. "Such a delicate creature, isn't she? With a swipe of my claws and she would be dead." The deep voice rumbled out as the clawed hand stroked Kagome's neck. All of them were seeing red at this point.

"Put her down." Sesshoumaru growled out a took a step forward. Again, the youkai laughed and scratched Kagome's neck, this time drawing blood. The vibrant red flecks glided down her white column throat and attracted all of their gazes.

"Now, we are going to play a little game, my (pretties!) pets. You have landed on my island and so you will have to play."

"What if we don't?" Kouga demanded.

"Then you will all die. Here and now."

"But…we didn't want to land on your island!" Shippo squeaked, still staring in horror at Kagome's bleeding neck.

"That is irrelevant, kit. Now then, shall I set the object and rules for the game? Yes, I think I shall. The game is called search and find. You will have to find me, before my little blood-thirsty pets find you. You have until the moon is at full power to find me, if you don't…your human will die."

Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru snarled. "You're going to kill her! She's done nothing to you!"

"Yes…I suppose I will kill her…in a way. The little scratch on her neck is an injection of over 150 milliliters of acidic poisons, made by myself. Only I hold the antidote. Find me and the antidote is yours. If my pets don't kill you first." The man threw Kagome at them and Sesshoumaru caught her. The dark figure disappeared and reappeared in a tree a little bit away from the boulder.

"And what the hell do you call yourself?" Inuyasha growled out, trying to reign in his temper. The dark figure chuckled and the sunlight finally hit his face. Black wavy hair framed a pale white face and blood red eyes. "My name," the man started, his lips curling up in an evil smirk, "is Naraku."

:Dreamland:

Kagome looked over at the bed and shook her head I horror. She knew where she was and she didn't like it at all. The small body shaped lump on the bed shifter and a pale, bony hand slid out from under the numerous comforters. A rattle-like wheeze sound came from the figure and breathy word was barely made out.

"Kagome…"

Kagome shook her head and shrank against the wall, tears falling down her face. She watched in wide-eyed horror as a twelve year old version of herself slowly walked to the side of the bed. The bony hand shot up and grabbed onto her clothes with surprising strength and jerked the twelve year old Kagome toward the bed.

"Listen, my child. You must believe the stories, and you must protect it with your life, do you understand?"

Kagome looked away from the figure laying in the bed and down at the floor. The hand shook her and demanded an answer yet again. "Kagome! Do you understand!" The younger Kagome sniffed and nodded, while the older Kagome stifled the urge to scream out in grief.

"Yes, Momma, I understand."

:AN:

And that my dear readers is what they call a "wrap". Well? Confused? Intrigued? Pissed off? Want to kill me? However you feel about this tell me! As always, I will respond to your emails and send you a response that way if you leave your email address. Other then that, I hope my writing skills aren't too bad.

Happy April Fools! I celebrate it everyday cause I believe the happiest people are the fools!


	4. The Search

A Tempting Fate

Chapter Four

By Kaguya's Chaos

Before I begin….I would like to say that I am now officially hooked on Rob Zombie's 'Living Dead Girl.' Thanks a lot Kelli. I hope you are happy. :puts head phones back on and bangs head as the music is cranked up:

Previously:

:Dreamland:

Kagome looked over at the bed and shook her head in horror. She knew where she was and she didn't like it at all. The small body shaped lump on the bed shifted and a pale, bony hand slid out from under the numerous comforters. A rattle-like wheeze sound came from the figure and breathy word was barely made out.

"Kagome…"

Kagome shook her head and shrank against the wall, tears falling down her face. She watched in wide-eyed horror as a twelve year old version of herself slowly walked to the side of the bed. The bony hand shot up and grabbed onto her clothes with surprising strength and jerked the twelve year old Kagome toward the bed.

"Listen, my child. You must believe the stories, and you must protect it with your life, do you understand?"

Kagome looked away from the figure laying in the bed and down at the floor. The hand shook her and demanded an answer yet again. "Kagome! Do you understand!" The younger Kagome sniffed and nodded, while the older Kagome stifled the urge to scream out in grief.

"Yes, Momma, I understand."

Now:

Kagome woke up with a gasp and turned to her side to retch on the ground. Dry heaves gripped her body and tears fell from her eyes. Beside her, Inuyasha placed a hesitant hand on her shoulder and gently rubbed her back. A little farther away Kouga held both Rin and Shippo in his arms as they watched with wide eyes. Sesshoumaru stood the farthest away, watching Kagome's every breath with a cold mask.

Inuyasha watched on in worry as trickles of blood left her coughing mouth and splattered to the ground. It seemed the poison was working fast. Everyone else smelled the blood and Rin and Shippo leapt from the wolf's arms and toward Kagome. Kouga, not one to be left behind, jumped up as well and over to Kagome.

Sesshoumaru followed along at a slower pace. No one said anything as Kagome slowed her bloody coughs and sat up shakily. Her eyes were glazed over in pain and her cheeks were extremely pale. Flecks of blood coated her dry, cracked lips and dribbled down her chin in a lazy stream.

"Are you ok, Kagome?" Shippo asked quietly and Kagome tried to focus her eyes on the hazy figures before her. She attempted a smile and sat back with the help of Inuyasha. "Y-yeah. Just a bad…dream." She hesitated on the last word, not knowing what to call it exactly. It was a memory…but she didn't remember most of it.

'I thought I had suppressed those awful memories for good. Why now, of all times? What was it I was supposed to protect? What were these stories I was supposed to believe?' Kagome lost herself in her thoughts, trying to stop herself from freaking over the fact that she couldn't see very well.

Inuyasha watched the girl drift off mentally and cast a worried glance to his older brother. He may hate him, but Inuyasha knew Sesshoumaru better then anyone and what he saw in his older brothers face made him panic a little. His face was as stoic as ever, but his eyes were a faint pink. No doubt he was frustrated over the new "game" they were forced to play and the fact that he didn't know how to cure the girl.

They had watched over Kagome the whole day since the bastard, Naraku, had left and had been slightly alarmed by the affects the poison had on her. Her body had gone through a series of convulsions and her temperature had risen and dropped at dramatically fast rates. Kouga, Sesshoumaru, and himself had tested her blood to see if they could identify the toxin, but were unsuccessful.

Inuyasha's thoughts stopped when Kagome's weak voice drifted passed his ears. "What happened?" She asked softly as she gazed at them in a scary, far-away look. 'She…she can't focus right.' Inuyasha thought sadly as he noticed she seemed to squint her eyes to see better.

"It seems this island isn't as remote as we thought." Sesshoumaru answered, trying to keep the worry out of his voice. His face was set in its usual mask and his eyes showed nothing of his inner frustration.

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked after a brief silence and tried to focus on Sesshoumaru's figure. 'What the hell is wrong with me!' She screamed internally as she tried to listen to the words being spoken.

"A…man, named Naraku, appeared and knocked you out. He issued a challenge to a sort of game. We have to find him on this island somewhere before a week is up." Kouga continued, skirting around the whole youkai issue. Kagome frowned.

"Like hide and seek? Why the hell would a grown man want to play hide and seek? Why did he knock me out! Is there anymore civilization on this island? Come on guys! Give me some real answers! Not all this vague stuff!" She demanded as she tried to glare at everyone. " And why is my vision all messed up!" She ended on a panicked sob, putting her hands over her face.

Kouga placed an arm around her shoulders and Rin and Shippo launched into her lap. Sesshoumaru sat down and Inuyasha put his hand around Kagome's waist. "This man is psycho. He is sending out…assassins after us during the week we have to find him. If we don't find him in a week we die." Inuyasha finished and squeezed her waist to comfort her crying frame. Kouga frowned and decided to answer her last question…with a lie. "And your sight is off because he may have hit the pressure point, to knock you out, a little too hard."

Kagome slowly calmed and relaxed a bit. Rin and Shippo both gripped her shirt as their tears soaked into the said fabric. 'They're not telling me something.' She decided, as she gazed, or tried to, at the ground. A throb of pain pulsed at her side and spread through her chest to squeeze her lungs. Pushing the children away and standing up, Kagome vaulted into the trees, promptly vomiting up blood.

Grasping a tree for support, Kagome sagged to the ground and coughed. 'Ugh. Some vacation I got here.' She thought to herself as she stumbled back up and whirled around to face the white blur known as Sesshoumaru. He leaned forward and dabbed a cloth over her face, wiping away blood and sweat. "Don't do anything to tire yourself out." He said softly as he grabbed a hold of her arm and lead her over to the camp again.

Before she even made it to her spot again, her eyes rolled back into her head and her last thought was of how strange the man, above them, looked with wings.

:with M/S:

Miroku sat behind the large cherry wood desk and stared down at the papers before him, blankly. Numbers and figures made his eyes cross and his already frustrated mind scream in agony. His eyes wandered over the desk and to the picture frame on the corner. It was a picture of him and Sango the day of their wedding. Kagome had taken the picture, so it wasn't very straight, but that's what made it so special.

On the other side of the desk was a purple stapler and a blue container filled with pencils. Sharpened pencils. Hmmm…

:change of POV:

Sango sighed as she once again found herself staring at Kagome's office door. With an angry huff, she got up and walked down the hall toward the elevators and onto Miroku's office. Entering the elevator, Sango pressed the 31st button and watched as the doors slid shut. She sagged slightly against the wall of the small compartment and closed her eyes. 'I know that pervert is doing something stupid right now. Most likely throwing sharp pencils at the ceiling…or at his secretary. The poor boy.'

Kagome had given the position of Miroku's secretary to a male, which caused Miroku to scowl and the other female employees to giggle. All of them were aware of the CEO's perverted nature and were secretly relieved they weren't given the position. Sango smirked when she remembered Miroku's face the first day the new secretary had come in.

Sango was brought out of her thoughts as the loud "DING" from the doors sounded and a man in a business suit walked in. he pressed the 23rd button and leaned against the wall of the elevator. "Did you hear?" The man's weird scratchy-like voice asked and Sango looked at him in confusion. "That Miss Higurashi went missing in that bizarre plane crash? What do you think will happen to the company now?"

Sango clenched her hands at her sides and grit her teeth. "Nothing will happen to the company. Miss Higurashi will be back before you know it and everything will be fine." Sango paused as the doors again opened signaling the fact that they had reached the 31st floor. "Good day to you." She huffed and walked out the elevator leaving the shocked man to stare after her.

Miroku paused in his favorite game of "Secretary Dart Throwing" when the strangely familiar sound of feet stomping reached his ears. He slowly turned his head from where he sat and his frightened secretary, Hachi, poked his head up from where he was hidden behind the small, over-turned couch. Both sets of eyes widened at the approaching sound. Miroku stared in fright and Hachi in relief as they both realized why the sound was so familiar.

Sango burst through the door and her fiery eyes landed on a frozen solid Miroku and a sobbing secretary. Hachi leapt to his feet and ran through the door as fast as he could, Miroku gulped and slowly lowered his lead-filled "dart". "Sango, my love-"

"Don't even start, Miroku! I knew you were fooling around!" The woman said as she walked toward him. "Have you finished those reports! What will Kagome say when she comes back to find the company in shambles? What will she say if she is proved right in your incompetence?" Miroku flinched every time Kagome's name was thrown in. Earlier, the couple had decided that Kagome was to stubborn to die by a plane crash.

"Ok, Sango, calm down." Miroku tried to calm Sango down and stared in horror as she broke down into tears. He held her tightly to himself as he wondered if fooling around really was THAT bad. "Sango, love, what is wrong?" He asked softly.

Sango backed away and wiped at her tears with fury. "Nothing. Just…just tired I guess." Miroku didn't press her and instead allowed his trusty hand to reach it's destination. Sango's head snapped up and, on reflex, her hand connected with the pervert's cheek. "Can't you be serious for one minute!" She nearly screamed and stormed out of the office.

Miroku smiled briefly, proud that his little distraction worked. 'Can't have my little flower depressed.' His head snapped up and his body went to attention at Sango's next demand. "Finish those reports, Miroku!" With her parting words, the door was slammed shut and Miroku sighed. Sitting down in his leather chair, Miroku stared at the meaningless words again. 'How does Kagome put up with this?'

His eyes once again slid from the paper and to the now half empty container of sharpened pencils. 'Hmmm…' "Hachi! Oh, Hachi!"

:With the bad guys…well, one of them.:

Hojo sat at his desk and reviewed over the reports scattered over the top. His search team had not found hide nor hair of Kagome and it was seriously starting to annoy him. On top of that, the Taisho company has sent out their own search team, lead by a Myoga Myojin, which constantly got in the way of his team, lead by Onigumo. Not surprisingly, Shikon Inc. sent their own search team lead by a Miss Ayame. But the real thorn in his side was the duo detectives also on the search. Ginta and Hakakku Sekka.

Onigumo had sent in many complaints over these two gumshoes and their meddling. Hojo sighed as he reclined in his seat again and stared out of the large window in his spacious office. 'Where are you, Kagome? To what islands have you drifted to? I know you are on one of the islands in the tropics…' Hojo looked back down at the most recent report that had confirmed his suspicions on her whereabouts.

'…off the western coast a floating piece of flotsam was found. The lingering scent of that of Miss Higurashi and a group of others was found on the surface. There was also a large red stain we believe was Higurashi's blood. The lab tech's have confirmed it is indeed Higurashi's. Most likely from the crash.'

'The other scents found on the flotsam must be the other missing passengers…' Hojo's thoughts were put to an abrupt stop as the office door swung open and his giggling secretary, Eri, stood before him. Hoko immediately pasted on his goofy-innocent smile. "What can I do for you, Miss Eri?" he asked in his artfully fake cheerful and carefree voice.

Eri giggled and blushed. "Oh, Mr. Masaru, so sorry to disturb you! You have a visitor, a Mr. Myojin." Hojo nodded and told her to show him in. Just as the door shut, Hojo stiffened as he remembered where he had heard that particular name before. 'He's the one leading the search for-'

The door swung open again and an old man with a bald spot and large gray whiskers walked in. He was short, Hojo realized as he stood to shake hands with the detective. 'Barely comes to my chin.' he thought in slight male satisfaction and sat back down. "What can I do for you, Mr. Myojin?"

:Change of POV:

Myoga shifted in his chair and stared at the business man before him. He easily saw through the fake dopiness and innocent air. 'This man is a con-artist.' he affirmed in his mind as he thought back to what his superiors told him. 'He is sneaky, but we need his help on finding Lords Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha.' Myoga reminded himself and relaxed in the chair.

"I have been in search of the missing passengers of the private jet that recently went down a week or so ago. Our search team has bumped up against your own search team during our investigation and I was sent here to ask if we may join forces to find the missing persons." Myoga said in an uncomfortable tone and with a stiff back. It was obvious what he thought of this soon-to-be merger.

Hojo Masaru sat forward and placed his elbow on the desk. "Really? Well, this solves one of the problems in my own search. I only have one condition to this."

Myoga raised a bushy eyebrow and leaned forward. "A condition?"

"No one is to touch Miss Higurashi." Hojo's voice came out steely and intimidating. Myoga raised both eyebrows at this and confused shock washed over his face. "She is to be my fiancée and I won't have anyone else touch what is mine."

Myoga nodded his head slightly and vowed to think over this later. "Deal." he stuck out his hand and Hojo relaxed slightly. A small smile curled his features and he grasped the detectives hand.

"Deal."

:Hehehehe:

KC: Ahem…that's all I have for you today…I know it's short but it's all I had time to write cause of the pressure of school. As always…Please read, review and rate!


	5. The Hunt

A Tempting Fate

Chapter 5: The Hunt

By Kaguya's Chaos

Miroku frowned as he stared at the papers before him. By some freak accident, he was actually paying attention to the words printed before him. It wasn't as surprising though, considering the report was on the search for Kagome. He reread the words on the report and felt like jumping up and down in anger.

"That bastard." he whispered heatedly to himself as he stared at the four letter name that cause such ire. Hojo. "So, the two-faced asshole put out his own search, eh? He also joined with Taisho Industries." Miroku threw the paper back on his paper strewn desk and frowned. He leaned back in his chair and tilted his head to glare at the ceiling. It was at this point that Sango walked in.

"What's with the serious face? What's wrong?" Sango asked as she stood in front of his desk. Miroku pointed to the paper, indicating that she should read it.

Giving him a wondering look, Sango picked up the paper and read over the report. 'I have the unfortunate task to report that Miss. Higurashi is no where to be found upon the immediate area of our search. However, there was a piece of flotsam found in the bay area. It is speculated it was from the crash. Blood was found on the 'craft' and was immediately tested for who's it was. Results concluded that it was, indeed, Miss. Higurashi's.' Sango gasped at this and prayed her friend and sister was ok.

"Oh, keep reading." Miroku said, with light sarcasm. "It gets better."

'The search for Miss. Higurashi is progressing slower then previously thought. A My. Onigumo Price has interfered more then once. As well as two annoying detectives searching for their "brother" Kouga Wolf and an older detective looking for the missing Taisho brothers. It is to be expected that the Mr. Onigumo is as well in search of Miss. Higurashi and is employed under a Mr. Hojo Masaru.' Sango stopped reading and looked up at Miroku with a horrified expression.

"Miroku…" Sango trailed off and Miroku nodded. "I already have Miss. Ayame Timbre on her way." He said and Sango nodded. She sat down in one of the chairs and reread the report over. "Miroku. We have to find Kagome before that bastard." Miroku nodded and combed a hand through his already disheveled hair. "We have to." Sango repeated just as she heard Hachi buzz through to Miroku's intercom.

"Mr. Higurashi? A Miss. Ayame Timbre is here to see you."

"Let her in."

:with Myoga:

Myoga Myojin stood in a lab where the young Miss. Higurashi's blood was determined. A frown marred his brow as he picked up on the scent of Lord Sesshoumaru's saliva intermixed with it. After all, he was a flea demon. He could pick out the different scents contained in blood from a mile away, and Lord Sesshoumaru's saliva was definitely mixed in.

'What would Lord Sesshoumaru be do-' He cut off the thought as he remembered that the Great Taiyoukai had a healing substance in his saliva. 'He healed Higurashi's wound? By licking it! I wonder how that passed off for the young woman?'

Myoga snapped out of his thoughts when two suspicious looking people in trench-coats sauntered into the room. The lab techs didn't seem to notice and were busy taking off bits and pieces of the now broken down flotsam and placing them in various liquids for testing. Myoga frowned and slowly approached the two characters. He walked up behind them and allowed his hands to drop down onto their shoulders. The two males whirled around and Myoga realized they were wolves.

"May I ask to what you are doing back here?" he asked staring into the startled brown eyes of both boys. They looked at each other then back to Myoga and gave him extremely cheesy grins. "Uh…nothing?" Was the first tentative answer and Myoga frowned even more.

"Is that so?" He asked as two security guards approached and grabbed a hold of the two boys. "Sorry sir. We've been looking for them everywhere." One of the guards said as the other began to drag the second suspicious guy away. Myoga nodded and the boys were escorted out the doors and into the alley it lead to.

:With Ginta and Hakkaku:

"And stay out!" The guards yelled as both of them were thrown out of the lab and on their asses. Ginta jumped back up to his feet. Shaking a fist in the air he yelled at them. "We're detectives too! We should be allowed to enter!" Hakkaku shook his head and stood up too. He sighed as he thought over all he and his brother had been through the whole week since their other 'brother' had disappeared.

'First we were told that a search party wasn't going to be sent in search of Kouga, then me and Ginta decided to look for ourselves and wound up fired. We lost our apartment because we couldn't pay rent. My girlfriend dumped me cause I started neglecting her. We were attacked by muggers on the street and they took our clothes! We're only left with these damn trench-coats and these weird old movie hats. I haven't eaten in days and we're reduced to stealing and sneaking around!'

He broke himself off as he stood up and placed a hand on the still fuming Ginta's shoulder. "C'mon Ginta. Lets just go. There might be another back door."

With that, both trudged off to find another way to get in to the lab that could possibly tell them where their friend was.

:back with Myoga:

Myoga stared after the two boys and shook his head. 'Were they naked under those coats?' He wondered absently to himself as he turned around to stare at the only person in the room who disturbed him more then that thought. Onigumo Price. The man was despicable in every way possible. His glinting eyes showed a homicidal tendency and his too wide grin showed his insanity.

But, no matter how he loathed the man, he had to admit, he was a genius when it came to uncovering evidence and piecing together other things in the crash. 'He's a great detective but a horrible man.' He said in his head as he watched as Onigumo stalked around the room staring at certain pieces of the flotsam.

Myoga felt his ears twitch and turned around as a red headed, pig-tailed woman entered the lab. 'Another wolf?' He watched as she approached one of the lab techs and flashed out her badge. The technician paled and began sputtering out an answer. This caught both Onigumo's and Myoga's attention. That particular lab tech worked in the back and didn't tell either of the detectives anything about what it was he was doing.

Both approached the woman as she frowned and answered back. "So you haven't gotten as far as you had promised? You do realize you are getting paid for this, do you not?" The lab tech sputtered again.

"B-but, Miss. Timbre! I am almost done with my analysis! I just have to run the pieces through the scanned again and I can tell you where the-" he cut off abruptly as the female smashed a hand over his mouth. She flashed her eyes over at Myoga and Onigumo, who now stood behind the tech.

"Right. Keep up the work. I will be back within the hour for the results." Se said and sent the relieved tech on his way. "Good evening, boys. How may I help you?" She asked in a cool voice as she looked over the two male detectives before her. Onigumo scowled and sauntered away and both Myoga and Ayame watched as he did so.

"You are Ayame Timbre are you not? The lead detective from Shikon Inc?" Myoga inquired and Ayame nodded smiling. "Yes indeed. And you are Myoga Myojin form Taisho Industries? May I ask, why are you working with that creep?" Myoga grinned and looked over at Onigumo.

"Wasn't my decision. Jaken, the company advisor decided to join forces and resources with Mr. Masaru." Myoga said as he turned to stare at Ayame again. Ayame nodded and frowned. She leaned closer and spoke in a whisper. "Mr. Myojin, may I speak with you somewhere with less…" She trailed off and Myoga nodded his head.

"Of course. Shall we?" He asked as he held up his arm and lead the way out the door and into the hall. It was eerily quiet, but not a soul was around. "What would you like to speak of, Miss Timbre?"

"How would you like to drop your association with Mr. Price and join with our search party?" Myoga's eyes widened and he turned to stare at the young woman before him. Her eyes were turned from his and she was watching through the window the way the techs swarmed all over the metal junk that had brought evidence of the survivors.

"Are you suggesting I break a contract?" he asked as he watched the woman before him with narrowed eyes. Ayame grinned and turned around. "Normally, yes I would be. But you didn't sign a contract with Mr. Masaru. Or rather, he never signed that contract, did he?" Myoga felt his eyes widen again and smiled slightly in bemusement. "Yes, I guess that is true. Isn't it?" Ayame again grinned at the old man and turned to the window again.

Myoga scratched at his whiskers and thought it over. "What have you to offer to this search that we do not already have?" He asked after a while and Ayame turned back to him with a serious look on her face.

"I can tell you what brought down the plane, and let me tell you it had nothing to do with bad weather or any internal damage."

:Miroku and Sango after the meeting:

Miroku stared after Ayame as she left and noticed Sango doing the same. Disbelief and shock still raged within their minds as they tried to take in all that was said during the meeting.

:Flashback:

Ayame Timbre walked in with an air of confidence and dominance. Her head was held high and her shoulders were squared, as if anticipating a battle. Sango raised an eyebrow and looked over to Miroku. He, unfortunately for him, had a lecherous gleam in his eye. Sango felt her eyebrow twitch and her hand begin its remembered journey to the back of his head.

BAM

Miroku fell over onto his desk and let out a sigh. Ayame sat down in the chair in front of the desk. She smirked slightly and looked over at Sango. "I see you have him well trained!" She said as she laughed at the CEO's expense. Sango giggled along with her and Miroku grumbled into his desk.

Sitting up straight, Miroku donned a serious expression. "Ayame. We received your first report today-" Ayame's eyebrows drew together. "You just got today! So you didn't get the newest one?" She asked near hysterical. Sango and Miroku both frowned and shook their heads.

Ayame sighed and put her head down. "I was wondering why you hadn't given me any orders concerning Myojin and Price." Miroku leaned forward and frowned. "What did your latest report say?" He asked, anticipation and anxiety lancing through his system. Sango also felt anxiety and leaned forward as well.

"I found out what it was that brought down the plane…but I don't know if you'll believe me." She trailed off as she looked at her superiors. Miroku scowled and stood up. "Enough of this delay and continuation of this drama! Our sister, friend, and least important, employer, is out there somewhere and it's your job to report what you find! Now what did you find!"

Ayame held up her hands to placate the man radiating holy energy and thought to herself, 'Am I trying to find one person…or three?' "I'm sorry! Please calm down!" She said trying not to wince at the burn the man's aura was putting on her. 'Damn holy man!'

Miroku let out a breath and sat down. Contrary to what the woman believed he knew what his holy aura did to her. He also knew about youkai. That was the reason he wanted to become a houshi in his younger years. Though, he couldn't tell his favorite cousin about youkai. No…not innocent Kagome.

Ayame sighed as the holy energy receded and she sat up straight. Sango watched this all with confusion. She knew something else had happened between them then what was in front of her. Ayame closed her eyes and tried to regain her bearings again. "Anyway, the thing that took the plane down was a youkai. A demon." Sango's eyes widened beyond possibility and Miroku frowned.

"Are you sure?" He asked with a small whisper and Ayame nodded. Sango shot a look to her husband and raised an eyebrow. "You believe this? Just like that? No questioning about it?" Sango nearly shrieked then calmed when she realized her emotions were so near the surface. "How do you know it wasn't some freak wind? Or…or a flock of birds or something?" She asked Ayame and the wolf sighed.

"Because there is a subtle smell about the craft…or what's left of it. Normally, I wouldn't have picked up the scent, or I wouldn't have known what it was. But, I've smelled the same scent somewhere else. On a wind youkai that I used to be in acquaintance with." Ayame paused and Sango stared at her incredulously. "What do you mean by smelled? How could you smell…"

Ayame grimaced at the question and sighed once again. "Because I'm a wolf youkai." She said simply and allowed her concealment spell to drop. Sango gasped and jumped off the desk. Miroku looked bored and leaned forward once again. "Yes, but what kind of demon do you think attacked the craft?" He asked and tried to ignore the fact that Sango was gaping at the wolf demon.

"It wasn't the wind witch, if that's what you are implying. No, this one smelled slightly different. Not the same person, but maybe a relative." Ayame finished and glanced at her watch. A frown marred her brow. "I am afraid I cannot continue with this. I am late for a meeting with one of the lab tech's testing the flotsam for the origin of the moss on the side. We might find out what part of the ocean the survivors landed." She stood and started toward the door when Miroku stopped her.

"I want you to stop Mr. Price's investigation and join with Mr. Myojin." He stated and Ayame smirked back at him. "Sure thing, boss!" She chirped as she waltz out of the door and out of the building. Sango looked to Miroku and frowned. "Youkai? You've got a lot of explaining to do."

:End Flashback:

Kagura sat on her terrace and glared at the night sky. It was happening again and there was nothing she could do to stop it. She could feel her master calling to her, sending stabbing waves of pain at her occasionally. 'Alright! I'll come tomorrow! I need to conserve as much energy to reach you as possible!' She shouted telepathically to her summoner and cut off the link. Another brief stab of pain pervaded her being, warning her of her tone.

Kagura grimaced and lay down on the patio lounge she sat on. 'The only reason I delay this is cause I do not want to go back.' She thought, remembering the horror she had lived through with the humans that had last landed on the horrific island. Well, they hadn't chosen the island, instead they were guided by a freak storm. The one she created because of her master's wishes. 'I wonder who he got to crash the plane for new play toys?' She asked herself as she thought about the people that went missing. 'The top business people were included. He made a mistake with them. Why did he pick that particular plane? What was so special about the one's on it? Why did he allow those one's to live?'

Her thought's trailed off as she closed her eyes. As sleep crowded her mind, so did the old screams of pain and rage and the stench of blood that covered her for days. The sound of heavy breathing and a panicked heartbeat pounded in her ears and her feet ached, remembering the running she had to do when it was all over.

'You can't escape me, Kagura. Not then and certainly not now.' Was the last thing she heard in her head before they were all swept away into the back recesses of her mind.

:The scene you've all been waiting for:

Sesshoumaru caught Kagome just as she fainted and frowned down at her pale complexion. He raised his hand to her forehead and felt the fever building there once again. Rin and Shippo had rushed over the minute they had come through the trees and tried to see Kagome's face. Kouga and Inuyasha stood back, shadowed by the fire and the moon combined.

Before anything could be said a low deep voice from above stopped all of their voices. "Well, it seems the poison is worse then we previously thought." All heads snapped up to see a winged youkai floating above them frowning down at the unconscious girl. Sesshoumaru clutched the girl closer to him.

"Who are you?" Inuyasha yelled out at the youkai and growled. Kouga let out his own threatening growl and scowled at the youkai. Said youkai floated down out of the shadows and into the middle of the clearing. He folded his jet black wings into his body and brushed his black satin hair behind him. His silver eyes glinted over the group and Rin and Shippo hid farther behind the Taiyoukai.

"My name is Michael." He said and looked at something behind Sesshoumaru. "And that is my brother, Gabriel." Sesshoumaru turned his head to stare at the second winged youkai behind him. He quickly moved to where he could keep both youkai in his sight.

The second youkai had long silver-blonde hair and white wings. His eyes were an unsettling black color. Gabriel, as the youkai was called, had not taken his eyes off of Kagome the entire time they had noticed him. Kouga growled and leapt I front of Sesshoumaru, hiding Kagome from his view.

Gabriel frowned and looked up at the youkai that would dare to hide the beauty from him. His dark eyes flashed and his eyebrows lowered. "It's a shame such a beauty would have been put into such a severe state of danger." He stated before moving to stand beside Michael.

"What do you want?" Sesshoumaru said in a dangerous voice and the two youkai grinned. "Why, we are the first assassins to be sent after you, of course." Michael claimed and rose into the air. Gabriel took another look at Kagome and flew into the air as well. Both hovered above them for a while then smirked. "We just decided to introduce ourselves before the hunt actually begins. We give you the rest of the night to strategize. Good luck." Gabriel said and disappeared into the dark.

"And a happy hunting to us, no?" Michael finished as he too disappeared. Kouga and Inuyasha both swore and made to go after them, but Sesshoumaru stopped them. "We do not need you to going off to die prematurely. We need to find a good place to hide Kagome for a while. At least until we find the damn hanyou, Naraku."

Rin and Shippo frowned at the words the Taiyoukai said and shook their head looking to each other. 'This is not a good idea.' Shippo said into Rin's head and the girl nodded. Both turned to the rest of their small group and decided at that moment that they would stay with Kagome, no matter where she was.

"We're staying with Kagome." Shippo stated and Sesshoumaru nodded. Kouga and Inuyasha seemed to disagree with this plan but let it go. It would not do to argue with the stubborn youkai before them. 'We'll just make it work.' Both thought at the same time.

Sesshoumaru placed Kagome back on the ground and looked about their makeshift camp. "Lets take down camp and start our search." He decreed and everyone set about doing what needed to be done.

:In Kagome's head:

Kagome sat in the dark room and watched the same scene once again. Her dying mother making her swear to not forget and to take care of something she couldn't remember anything about. 'What was I supposed to protect!' She asked herself for the millionth time as the scene dissolved. She closed her eyes and waited for the process to repeat. When she opened her eyes again, it was to a small flower filled meadow.

"What the hell? Where am I now?" She asked herself as she stood on shaky legs to survey her surroundings better. Clear blue skies stretched above her and a grassy meadow before her. Trees surrounded the meadow on all sides and the chirp of birds sang sweetly in her ears. Yellow, blue and purple flowers dotted the meadow making Kagome smile and sit back down. It was a beautiful spot. The perfect place for a picnic. Kagome frowned as she realized this place couldn't be real.

There were no places like this in the world anymore.

"I knew this place would calm you down." A soft voice said from behind her and Kagome shot to her feet. Whirling around, with slight fear, Kagome gazed upon a beautiful woman with long dark brown hair and soft chocolate eyes. A smile lit the woman's face and her head tilted to the side in a curious pose.

"Do not worry. I am simply here to speak to you." Kagome didn't respond and instead moved back a step when the woman took a step forward. The woman frowned and tried again. "I picked this spot, because I knew you would find it relaxing." She trailed off as she noticed Kagome had stopped moving away from her advances.

The woman smiled and sat down, patting the grassy spot next to her. Kagome hesitated and then shrugged. 'What could it hurt?' She asked to herself and sat down next to the woman. They sat in silence for a while, simply enjoying the nature. "My name is Midoriko." The woman said suddenly and turned her gaze to Kagome's face.

Kagome jumped slightly from the sound of the woman's voice and turned to her herself. "Oh, um, I'm Kagome." She said back and Midoriko smiled. "I know." She said softly and then frowned. "As much as I would have liked this to be a peaceful talk, I'm afraid I have something important to tell you." She said and Kagome looked to her in confusion.

"You are on an island and surrounded by youkai." Midoriko said and nearly smacked herself at the blunt way she had said it. She had been told to tell the unknowing miko about youkai gently. Not make it sound like, 'Oh, you are surrounded by demons with no way of getting any human help! Have fun!' She nearly groaned at the blank look on the girls face. 'Great! I'm not a great speaker! Why did they pick me for this?'

Kagome stared at Midoriko in confusion and then shook her head. "I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly." The young business woman said as she watched the other woman's face. Midoriko sighed and tried again.

"Kagome, do you believe in youkai?" She asked waiting for the negative answer. What she got however, shocked her. "Yes, but I don't think any of the guys I'm with are youkai…they don't give me that creepy feeling I sometimes get from youkai." Kagome said haltingly as she stared down at the flower she was twirling in her fingers.

Midoriko stared at the young woman in disbelief. 'It appears the girl has knowledge on youkai but not knowledge on the fact that her aura is being held in chains. This will be a lot easier then I had previously thought.' Kagome shifted slightly and looked at the woman in uncertainty. Midoriko smiled and shook her head.

"My dear, let me tell you a story. About five hundred years ago, there was another ship that landed on the island you and your fellow survivors are now on. They didn't land on the island of their volition, however. A sudden tropical storm blew them off course and to the rocks on shore." Midoriko paused in her story and Kagome looked at the woman in an expectant manner.

"The island was, at the time, shrouded in clouds and dark fog. Still, the rain pounded on the small land formation with no mercy…" Midoriko's voice faded as she seemed to be sucked into a memory. Kagome's eyes widened as she realized that Midoriko wasn't telling this story from third person like she had tried to make it seem. She was telling it from first person.

Midoriko had lived this.

"Everyone that had lived through the crash of the ship sat below decks, huddling for warmth."

:500 years ago:

Midoriko watched as the captain of the ship paced back and forth on the small space allotted to him in their dry quarters. His name was Davis…a strange European that had agreed to provide transportation across the ocean to the America's. To her left, Midoriko felt her sister Subaki shift in her sleep. The girl was two years younger then Midoriko's own twenty-eight years. Not really a girl anymore, but still a girl to Midoriko.

Outside, Midoriko tried not to focus on the crash of tides against the side of the boat and the roar of the thunder and the shriek of lightning hitting not to far away. The gentle pitter patter of the rain that most enjoyed was warped into a threatening sound of arrows pelting the sides and top of the ship.

Midoriko looked over to the group of men that had remained loyal to her, even though she carried the burden she now has. Although whether this loyalty was trickery or not remained to be seen. Subaki shifted again and Midoriko glanced down at her. A sigh fought through her lips and drifted over the ears of those in the room.

Damien, a crew member, one of the few remaining, stood and made his way to Midoriko's side. Sitting to her right. "Don't worry. The storm will stop and then we'll be able to repair the damages to the ship." He said, trying to cheer her up. Midoriko smiled slightly and shook her head. "I am sorry for the men you lost." She whispered back and tried to ignore the shadow that passed over his eyes.

"Yeah." He answered and stood back up. Midoriko felt the dregs of exhaustion swamp over her and slowly closed her eyes, falling into a dreamless sleep.

:morning:

Midoriko woke to the unsettling sound, or lack there of, of the rain. It had stopped and an eerie silence had fallen over the ship. Many who had followed her into sleep, woke up immediately and those already awake froze in what they had been doing.

Subaki yawned and stretched. Her young face stretched into a large smile as she stood up. "The rain's stopped!" She exclaimed breaking the tense silence. The rest of the ships crew and Midoriko's small entourage breathed a sigh of relief and allowed small smiles to grace their faces.

Midoriko smiled slightly and stood herself. Captain Davis reached the stairs leading up before her and slowly opened the door. Water that had accumulated during the storm rushed down the stairs and soaked their boots and hems of their clothes. Subaki let out a shrill yelp as the cold water touched her skin and soaked her clothes.

"Aw! Do you know how much these cost!" She yelled and everyone rolled their eyes. It was well known that Subaki was extremely vain when it came to her clothes and appearance. Midoriko, herself resisted the urge to roll her eyes and continued her ascent to the top of the stairs.

Bright white light filled their vision as they tried to focus on their surroundings. The minute Midoriko saw the island they had crashed on, her breath was stolen from her lungs and her eyes glittered with appreciation. It was a gorgeous island.

Vegetation screamed in green awareness and the soft white sand practically tugged at her in invitation. The exotic sounds coming from the veritable jungle before her both enticed her and frightened her in their strangeness. The peaceful awe was broken by a squeal coming from the ever vain Subaki. "Oh My Kami!" She shrieked and Midoriko sighed.

Captain Davis frowned and looked down at the Japanese miko he was attracted to. He had been inching toward Midoriko since she had been captivated by the sight and was raising his hand to place on her shoulder when her annoying sister ruined the moment. 'Damn brat!' He thought to himself as he turned to address his remaining crew.

Damien had seen the captains advance's and didn't like it at all. His eyes flashed with malice as he watched the man's hand inch up and settle right above the miko's shoulder. His face split into a grin as the annoying sister of the enchantress interrupted the Captain's movements. Obviously the girl knew what she had interrupted as well, because she grinned in mischievous malice at the back of the turned Captain Davis.

Subaki watched as the Captain withdrew his hand and grinned. 'Heh. How dare that low-level European try to touch my high ranking sister. No one is good enough for her, and so she shall remain untouched by any male! She only needs me.' Subaki thought as she skipped over to said sister.

"Midoriko! Lets go explore the island while the others fix the ship!" Subaki suggested grinning and ignored the glares this statement received. Midoriko smiled gently at her sister and turned to look at the Captain in askance. Not able to turn away the smile, Davis nodded and sighed. "Do not go too far, milady." he warned and Subaki cheered and dragged Midoriko to a spot that could easily be accessible from the shore.

Midoriko entered the tree-line of the forest and froze. There was something on this island. Something that was extremely hostile. And it knew they were there.

:End of Midoriko story for now:

:With Sesshoumaru and the rest:

Sesshoumaru set Kagome down on the floor of the hidden cave they had found behind a waterfall. Naraku's scent was nowhere around the place which means he either doesn't know about it or hadn't been here in years…

Rin sat beside Kagome's pliant body and Shippo stood at her feet. They both looked to the older males and smiled slightly. "We'll take care of her." Shippo said quietly and Rin nodded. Kouga and Sesshoumaru cast them wary glances but nodded. Inuyasha, however snorted and said something under his breath.

Without saying anything, the three males left the cave and made sure it was undetectable to any other youkai. They needn't have done much, it already avoided all of their senses, and if it hadn't been for Shippo falling into the small pond below the waterfall, they wouldn't have noticed it themselves.

None of them saw the ghostly figure of a man with torn sailors garb and messy short black hair. They didn't see the small smile on the figures face or the way the figures eyes flashed.

Inuyasha and Kouga grumbled threats to each other as they trudged behind a cross Sesshoumaru. "Yeah? Well, you're a shit eating-"

"Inuyasha. Shut that trap you call a mouth and think of something for once in your pathetic life." Sesshoumaru said, cutting off the half finished insult and Kouga grinned. "Wolf. Try not to act as stupidly as you really are and think of something useful." Sesshoumaru continued and made Kouga scowl at his back and Inuyasha smirk at him.

"Well, Mr. High-and-Mighty, what the hell are we supposed to think about!" Kouga growled out, still stung by the taiyoukai's comments. Inuyasha silently agreed with Kouga's heated question. What were they supposed to think about?

Sesshoumaru stopped and prayed the two behind him weren't as stupid as he thought they were. He turned around and looked into the angry eyes of the wolf and half-breed. "There are assassins out for our blood we have to find and destroy, not to mention a hanyou that has a death wish." he stated and watched as the anger in their eyes melted to be replaced with understanding and determination. 'Well, at least they're determined, beyond all else.'

:With the kids:

Rin and Shippo looked down at the girl before them and tried not to cry. Her face was flushed and her body would convulse sporadically. Rin turned to Shippo and sniffed back her tears. "I-is Kagome-nee-chan going to die?" She asked as she again looked at the girl she loved so much in such a short time.

Shippo shook his head and his own tears were stifled. "No. We're going to get that antidote and save her!" he declared and determination filled his eyes. Rin, seeing his look smiled slightly and slipped her small hand into his equally small one. "Right!"

Kagome shifted slightly in her sleep and let out a small sigh. Rin placed a hand on her forehead and Shippo let go of her other hand to stand up. He picked up a piece of torn cloth that had been saved for just in case and walked over to the waterfall. Rin scooted down the side of Kagome and took off the makeshift bandage to look over her wound.

Dried blood made it hard for Rin to peel off the cloth and the sight of the angry red wound made her gasp. It was worse then it had been. It looked like the wound had gotten even bigger and torn flesh around the tear was raw. "S-shippo!" Rin cried out and Shippo was there in a flash.

Looking down on the wound as well, he let out a dispirited moan. 'Guys…come back soon.' He thought as he ordered Rin to make new bandages out of Sesshoumaru's shirt, as the Taiyoukai had ordered to do, just in case. Rin nodded and began her duties. Shippo placed the cooled cloth on the girls head and inspected the wound.

'Momma only taught me what herbs to use for certain wounds…lets hope this island has some…' He thought as he stood up and told Rin he would be right back. "Shippo! Don't go out there! The bad guy might be there!" She squealed and Shippo shook his head. "I have to Rin…it's to help Kagome."

Rin stopped her protests at Kagome's name and nodded. "Ok. Be careful, Ni-san." With her last statement Shippo nodded and went on his way. His heartbeat picked up as he stepped out of the waterfall and started his search for the plants he needed.

:Dawn:

Sesshoumaru watched as the sun rose over the tops of the tropical trees and reflected off of his silver hair and silver tail. He and the other two had let down their concealing spells and had started the hunt for the other youkai.

Their scents were everywhere and, needless to say, they were all frustrated. This of course, caused them to act recklessly. Inuyasha had suggested they split up and Kouga had agreed. Both had immediately sprung in opposite directions. Sesshoumaru, who had silently disagreed with their plan, was left watching after them in irritation.

'Idiots. If one of them gets caught by the other youkai, they will not last long. This Sesshoumaru will be fine-' He cut the thought off as he realized he had referred to himself in the third person. 'Haven't done that since demons were excepted in the past and I was the ruler of the western lands…' He narrowed his eyes and began his own search. 'Something about this place brings out the more primitive side in me…' he thought as he fought the urge to let out a loud howl.

:with Inuyasha:

Inuyasha groaned for the eighth time in the last five minutes. He was really starting to regret the stupid plan of his. Growling slightly at the thought of how his brother or Kouga would react at seeing him in this position, Inuyasha shifted once again and immediately stilled as he felt his surroundings react.

'Aw, shit.' He thought as he tried not to freak. 'Ok, slowly shift toward the boulder…good…now slowly grab a hold of the- NO! Shit!' He nearly screamed in frustration as he missed the stick he was aiming for and a sick sucking sound filled his ears. 'Ugh… don't think about it…don't think about it…'

Inuyasha again tried to reach the stick and let out a cry of triumph as he felt it in his grasp. Getting a firmer grasp and hoisting himself out of his sticky trap he let out a smirk. 'Ha! Take that!' He started to walk away and became instantly aware of the fact that his footsteps made a squishing noise as he walked. He looked down at the goo on his clothes and scowled.

'Who ever heard of quicksand on a tropical island anyway!'

:with Kouga:

'Damn mutt! It's all his fault I'm in this mess!' Kouga thought as he again ran as fast as he could to escape it. Its hands gripping his arms and shoulders as it tried to throw him to the ground. He let out a shriek as he was tackled to the ground. 'EEE!' he screamed in his head as a pair of rubbery lips met his. 'NOOOOO!' he mentally bellowed as he thrust the offender away, only to be tackled by another one.

"Gah! LEAVE ME ALONE!" He screamed and sprinted away as the would be rapists were left behind.

'I HATE MONKEYS!'

:with Naraku:

Naraku stared into the mirror that allowed him to view the outside world. His face showed no emotion as he watched the silent youkai lord search for his assassins. 'How dull.' he thought as he commanded his faithful servant to switch to someone else. His eyes lit up in malicious glee at the sight of the dog hanyou struggling in a pit of quicksand. 'Who ever heard of a youkai getting stuck in quicksand?'

Deciding that the hanyou was boring when he got out of the quicksand, Naraku watched as the wolf was chased by a pack of enamored monkeys. 'Oh, the poor boy.' He thought remembering his own experiences when he first got to this island. 'Now for the girl.'

"Kanna. Find me the girl." He commanded and waited patiently. His thoughts were disrupted when Kanna's barely heard voice reached his twitching ears. "I cannot find her." She stated and Naraku felt his eye twitch.

"WHAT!"

:XD:

KC: Well folks…I think I have written enough for you…today… Heh. SO SORRY IT'S LATE! I had extreme writers block. Personally I thought this chapter was a little boring…sorry…I'm leading up to the fun stuff! All of my other stories will be update this weekend…I swear it! Read and Review please!


	6. The Past

A Tempting Fate

Chapter 6: The Past

By Kaguya's Chaos

:Inside Kagome's Head:

Kagome listened in rapt attention as Midoriko paused in her story. The beautiful meadow had changed to an over view of what Kagome thought was the island they were trapped on. The crystal blue water sparkled in the few rays of sunshine and threatening storm clouds were far off in the distance. There was no sound, other then the soft breathing of the two females and the slight beat of the surf on the sand.

Kagome grinned and watched in fascination as the wind blew through the trees and ruffled the exotic leaves. She frowned as a splotch of ugly brown caught her eye on the beach. 'Gah! It's that nasty looking skeleton!' She thought and tried to stop the shudder from racing through her body. "Midoriko? Is this the island we are on?" Kagome asked as she turned back to the silent woman. Midoriko smiled a bit sadly and nodded her head. "Yes. This is what it looks like currently." She said and frowned down on the green piece of land.

She narrowed her eyes and the island seemed to change slightly. The crystalline waters became choppy and malicious. The vegetation looked even more wild and the beach was bigger. The threatening storm was surrounding the island in a tight ring, definitely closer then it was before. But, the thing that caught Kagome's attention the most was the fact that the skeleton wasn't on the beach and a wrecked ship was.

"This is the island five hundred years in the past." Midoriko whispered and Kagome felt wind rush through her hair as they drifted closer to the island. Kagome felt slightly weirded-out as she realized there were no people, or any living thing, around. She felt her feet touch the slippery surface of the ship and she glanced over at the forlorn face of Midoriko.

Just as the older woman touch the deck of the ship, the scenery disappeared and the miko sighed. "It still does not stay for me." She whispered and Kagome frowned in confusion. She didn't say anything, though, as the ghost sat down on the, once again, flourishing meadow. She looked up at Kagome a smiled.

"I apologize for trailing off like that. Would you like to hear more of the story?" She asked softly as she patted the grass beside her. Kagome nodded enthusiastically and sat down, eager to hear more. Midoriko took in a deep breath and began her tale again. Her eyes glazed over and her words came out without any thought, describing what she remembered and saw with her inner eye.

:In the past:

Midoriko tried to keep her eyes from showing the hesitation and fear she felt. Subaki giggled as she dragged the reluctant miko from the safety of the ship and toward the dangerous unknown. "Isn't this great, Midoriko?" Subaki shrilled as she let go of her older sisters arm and danced about on the beach. Her feet kicked the white substance up behind her and her brown eyes flashed at everything with excitement.

Midoriko sighed as she watched the tree-line with wariness. She felt like she was being watched, and not by one of the sailors either. 'I am surprised Subaki hasn't picked up on anything yet.' She thought as she turned to look at the girl kicking her feet at the water. 'She has been slacking in her training.' She decided as she watched her sister fall backwards onto the sand.

"Miss Midoriko! Do be careful!" One of the sailors shouted from the railing and Midoriko smiled up at him. "You as well." She shouted back and walked calmly over to her errant sister.

Subaki giggled as Midoriko made her way over, shuffling uncomfortably in the western dress she had been forced to wear to "blend in" better with the rest of the westerners. "Midoriko! You won't believe how many fish are near the shore!" Subaki exclaimed as she grabbed Midoriko's hand once again.

Midoriko smiled at her sisters enthusiasm and allowed herself to be dragged over to the edge of the small tide. "Subaki. Calm down." She said in a low voice as she tried to ignore the nagging feeling of being watched. 'It's just the crew. It's just the crew.' She repeated over and over to herself as she settled down in the sand.

An hour later, Midoriko stood up as a shout for her came from behind. She stood up and turned to find Damien running toward her. Subaki had stopped her childish playing to glare at the man's intrusion. "Midoriko-sama. We are having our noon meal. Would you care for some tea while it is being prepared?"

Midoriko fought a blush as the handsome young man grinned at her. "That would be lovely." She whispered in reply, her voice nearly leaving her. Subaki sneered slightly at the man before she stepped up and forced a smile on her face. "Come on, 'Riko." She said, reverting to her nickname for her sister. "Let's go! I'm starving!"

Subaki grabbed a hold of Midoriko's arm and pushed the young sailor out of their way. Midoriko smiled sheepishly at the young man in apology. Subaki inwardly scowled. She had seen the way her sister had looked at the sailor. Not to mention the look he gave her in return. "He'll only brake your heart, 'Riko." Subaki said as she dragged her sister up the beach and to the ship.

Midoriko glanced at Subaki in confusion. "What are you talking about?" She asked as she stopped in her tracks. Subaki, feeling her sister stop in her tracks, turned to look back. "Never mind. Let's get something to eat! And some tea!" She said in reply and grit her teeth.

Neither of them noticed the gleaming red eyes twinkling in amusement from the bushes. 'Interesting group we've caught here.' An evil chuckled issued forth as the figure stepped back into the dark jungle once again. 'Interesting indeed. It seems the little sister is possessive of the older.' The evil figure disappeared completely, leaving one last thought. 'I could use this.'

:End of Midoriko story for now:

Rin looked down on the calm and eerily still form of the girl she had become attached to. Silent tears streaked her cheeks as she washed at the still bleeding wound. She let out a slight sob as she realized a strange greenish ooze was also leaking out of the wound. "Oh, Kami! Please come back, Shippo!" She ground out as she watched the weird mixture of crimson red and neon green drip out of the tear.

As if her prayers were answered, Shippo came leaping through the waterfall and skidding to a halt beside Rin. In his hands he clutched some raggedy looking weeds and freaky looking purple flowers. Rin let out a relieved cry and finally allowed herself to break down and cry. "Oh, Shippo! Look at her leg!" She yelled out and Shippo had to cover his ears momentarily.

Shippo looked over at the leg and his eyes widened. "Shit!" He whispered fiercely and Rin stopped her crying to smack Shippo on the back of the head. "Don't curse!" She said crossly as her eyebrows lowered dangerously. Shippo scowled back and rubbed the back of his head. Both of their attention was again returned to Kagome as the girl let out a small sigh.

Removing the scowl from his face, Shippo bent down and gently placed his small hands on either side of the gash. Putting slight pressure on the flesh he watched in horrified fascination as the green liquid came out in larger amounts. 'Is…is that the poison?' He asked himself as he bent down further to smell it.

His head jerked back up in disgust as the acrid smell of rotting flesh burned his nose hairs. 'Ok, that was a bad idea.' He mentally smacked himself as he rubbed furiously a his nose. Rin watched him through confused eyes as she tried to understand what her older brother was about.

"I wish Sesshoumaru-sama were here." She said quietly and Shippo nodded in agreement. "Rin, I think that green stuff is the poison that hanyou injected into Kagome-nee-chan's neck." He said just as quietly as she had wished for Sesshoumaru.

Rin jerked her head up to stare at Shippo in confusion. "How…why…what…?" She stumbled over her words as she tried to comprehend what that meant exactly. Shippo frowned as he watched as the blood all but stopped coming out while the green poison continued to flow. "The only thing I can think of that is happening is Kagome's body is trying to push the poison out of her through the wound…but how is that possible?" Shippo mused out loud as he turned to stare at his sister.

Rin shrugged and sniffled. "This is good…right?" She asked softly and Shippo nodded hesitantly. "Yeah, but how is she doing it?" His question was left unanswered as they both continued to watch in rapt attention as the green formed a puddle on the ground. Neither noticed the silent figure of a dark haired sailor at the mouth of the waterfall hidden cave.

:woo…creepy:

Sesshoumaru tilted his head back as he ran and took in the scents of the two he currently hunted. 'I am just rushing to find the damnable hanyou to get rid of the annoyance he presents. I do not care if the wench dies of poison.'

'_**Don't lie to yourself.' A voice whispered in the back of his head. It wasn't his conscious. Of that he knew for certain. 'Who the hell dares to enter this Sesshoumaru's mind!' He demanded in his head as he searched out whoever was trying to reach him. **_

'_**That is not important. What is, is that you hurry in your pursuit. You do not have much time.' The voice reiterated as Sesshoumaru paused in his sprint. 'Who are you!' He asked again and tried to determine whether the voice was male or female. 'You have to hurry, Lord of the Western Lands. The miko cannot do it alone. She will need your help.' **_

Sesshoumaru felt his eyes widen. 'A miko? Here!' He asked, incredulously. 'They haven't existed in…YEARS! They disappeared along with most youkai!'

'_**You do not have time, Taiyoukai! You must defeat the hanyou. The past must not repeat itself. He is already seeking out the help of his old allies.' Sesshoumaru frowned as the voice got louder and more urgent. It was a decidedly male voice, bordering on sounding feminine. 'Why is he calling allies? He seems to have enough of them here.' He asked with slight irritation as he began his search again, half paying attention to what the voice had to say.**_

'_**He has sensed the miko's power growing. He does not want a repeat of the past either.' The voice turned slightly sardonic. 'He wishes for this game to go much easier then before. Now he knows what to expect.' **_

Sesshoumaru frowned on the inside while his outside appearance appeared bored. 'This has happened before?' He asked as he tried to piece together the voices fragmented hints. **_'Yes. The ending was devastating, but the overall outcome was a success. That is what the hanyou wishes to rectify…even if he doesn't realize it yet.' _**Sesshoumaru frowned again and thought over the words. 'What do you mean he doesn't realize it yet?' He asked in slight suspicion.

The voice seemed to pause a while and Sesshoumaru was starting to think the voice had left him. 'Oh, great…I really am going insane on this hellish island. What next? Flying pigs? Purple cows?'

'_**Although the flying pigs and purple cows would certainly liven things up…I doubt you'd find any here.' The voice said and this time Sesshoumaru frowned on the outside as well as in. 'Naraku has no idea what the little miko carries. Nor of her past life.' The voice continued, answering the Taiyoukai's initial question. 'Wait…you mean that…the miko is…' Sesshoumaru trailed off, not knowing how to end his statement. Because saying it out loud, or in this case, internally, only finalized the shocking realization even more. **_

'_**Yes. The little miko is none other then Kagome.' **_

:Rolls eyes: Ok…who saw THAT one coming:

Inuyasha sighed as he finally got the last of the sticky goop off of his pants and out of his hair. His dog-like ears were still painfully coated in the stuff and it greatly impaired his hearing. As such, he didn't hear Kouga come crashing into the stream, screaming bloody murder. He did however, see, smell and feel the wolf slam into the water.

Kouga stopped his scream as he realized he was swallowing water and sputtered to the top. He heaved in great gulps of air as he tried to remove the fluid from his lungs. Inuyasha watched the wolf flail around and smirked. Kouga, finally able to calm down enough to take in his surroundings, met Inuyasha's eyes.

'What the hell happened to him!' Both thought at the same time as they took in the others appearance. Inuyasha's black pants had small little brown splotches and was soaking wet. His silver hair was matted and held traces of the same brown stuff as his pants and his ears were completely covered in the brown substance.

Kouga…looked like he had been attacked by…well…monkeys. His clothes were torn in places and his face had hand shaped bruises framing his cheeks. His hair was all over the place and his eyes looked slightly haunted. Inuyasha raised an eyebrow and smirked. "Damn Kouga…you look like you were attacked by love sick monkeys!" He exclaimed as he bent his head and proceeded to get the gunk out of his ear.

Since Inuyasha's face was in the water, he didn't see the horrified look that had crossed the wolf's face. Kouga quickly decided it wasn't manly to admit he had almost been raped by monkeys…so he lied. "No! I ran into some hot chicks! They couldn't keep their hands off me!" He shouted and, to his horror, a slight squeak entered his tone at the end of his last sentence.

Inuyasha flipped his head back up and stared at the wolf as if he were stupid. "Kouga…we're on a DESERTED island! There are no hot chicks here!" He exclaimed. Kouga blushed and turned his face away. "Kagome's hot." He stated defensively.

Rolling his eyes, Inuyasha decided to state the obvious. "Yeah, but she sure as hell ain't hangin' all over you!" Kouga growled and stood up in the knee-deep water. "That's only because she was poi-" Kouga cut himself off as he fully remembered why he was out here in the first place. Inuyasha tensed up as well and stood up.

"Keh!" Inuyasha said as he messed with his other ear. Both were now as clean as they could be. This, drew Kouga's attention to the half-breed's own appearance. "Did you fall in quicksand!" He asked, confused as to how a youkai could get stuck in quicksand, even though he was a hanyou.

"Shut up!" Inuyasha answered as he began walking in some random direction, searching for the winged youkai that were after them. Kouga grinned as he realized Inuyasha had indeed fallen in the sticky trap. "Baka." He said and ran after the now running half-breed.

:With Michael and Gabriel:

Michael chuckled as he watched the hanyou and wolf walk in the opposite direction they were in, following one of their previously made trails. Gabriel glanced to his brother and tried not to sigh in boredom. Trickery was not something he enjoyed. He would rather be doing what they were _supposed_ to be doing: hunting them down and killing them.

"What's wrong, Gabe? Bored?" Michael asked snidely as he glanced at his twin. Gabriel glared at him and turned to look over the tree tops. They were currently sitting in a rather large tree beside the stream the hanyou had been scrubbing in. Michael frowned at his brother's aloof attitude. "If you're that bored, why don't you go looking for the Taiyoukai? I'll keep an eye on the two morons."

Gabriel looked to his brother and nodded in agreement. "Fine." He said shortly and leapt out of his perch. Michael watched him go with narrowed eyes. 'He's been acting weird since we started this damn mission.' He thought as he turned back to the path the two arguing dogs had taken.

:With Gabe:

Gabriel sighed as he descended to the ground, landing softly, only to spring back up in a graceful leap. His wings had disappeared at his will, leaving him more room to move through the trees. Yes, he would go hunting, but his prey wasn't the Taiyoukai. No…it was the human girl.

Ever since he had seen her pale face and luscious raven hair, he had been unable to get her out of his mind. He had tried to tell himself that she was only human. And a dead one at that. She was going to die soon. The incompetent makeshift companions weren't going to get an antidote. There was none.

Naraku had lied when he had said the poison had an antidote. How was that possible? Gabriel didn't know. Only that Naraku had made it and he hadn't made an antidote. 'Pretty stupid, if you ask me.' Gabriel thought, 'What if you accidentally gave yourself the poison? You'd die a stupid and meaningless death.'

Gabriel paused his internal musings to sniff out the human girls scent. 'The intoxicating smell of juniper and jasmines interlaced with spring water.' Gabriel thought and felt his heart pick up speed as he caught her scent.

He growled to himself as he tried to calm down. 'It must be because of the mating season being so close. Yeah…that's the reason I feel so attracted to her.' He kept telling himself, even as he sped up, tracking her scent. A line from a weird movie he once watched came to mind as he leapt over a low hanging branch. "I'll get you my pretty…and your little dogs too."

:Back into Midoriko's story:

Midoriko sighed as she watched her little sister polish off yet another rice ball. How many has it been so far? Twenty-two? Thirty-four? Midoriko shrugged, deciding it didn't really matter anymore. Subaki giggled as she sat back and looked over at her sisters incredulous face. 'Where does she put it all?' Midoriko wondered to herself as she stood up.

"Subaki, come. I have realized you have been slacking in your miko training. Let's go somewhere on the beach, where we won't be in the way." She said as she walked a few paces from the table, expecting Subaki to follow. Subaki scowled at the now empty plate before her and grumbled under her breath.

Reigning in her temper, Subaki plastered a forced smile on her face and stood up to follow her rapidly disappearing sister. Subaki glanced around, realizing the hammering sounds and male voices had stopped. She immediately noticed that all male eyes were firmly planted on her sisters back. Narrowing her eyes in a dangerous manner, Subaki rushed forward and latched onto Midoriko's arm.

"Onee-chan! Lets go farther inland instead! That way we won't be disturbed by the hammering and such from the servants!"

Midoriko frowned and stopped her descent from the ship. "Subaki! These gentlemen are not servants! They are sailors kind enough to take us to Europe. Treat them with respect!" She said and glared at her sisters bored expression.

"Yeah, yeah! Sure sis! Anyway, please? Can we go?" She pleaded as she replaced her impassive face for the puppy eyes and raised eyebrows. Midoriko sighed and bowed her head. "We don't know what's out there, Subaki. It's too dangerous."

"But, 'Riko! We-you're a powerful miko! Surely nothing could harm us out there!" Subaki protested, feeling eyes burning into her back. Midoriko shook her head, and continued onto the beach. "'Riko! Please? We…we can get someone to come and watch out for us!" Subaki exclaimed as she ran after her sister.

Midoriko frowned and turned back to Subaki. "We can't ask that of any of the sailors! It would not be fair to them. They have their own responsibilities. We-" Midoriko was cut off as a deep voice interrupted. "I would be glad to accompany you."

Both girls spun around to stare at the dark haired Damien. Subaki scowled but hid her face behind her dark hair. Midoriko smiled and shook her head. "We can't pull you away from your duties!" She argued and watched as the handsome man jumped over the rail of the ship and splashed in the shallow water, moving toward them.

"Actually, I was given the job of discovering if there was anything edible on this rock. So, I could accompany you while looking for food." He said smiling and Midoriko was hard pressed not to blush and giggle like a little girl. Subaki glared at the sailor and rolled her eyes. 'As long as it's only one. And that he doesn't make any moves on Midoriko.' Just as she was finishing this thought, another voice, even less welcome sounded from above.

"I shall come along as well." All three of them looked up into the green eyes of the Captain. Damien and Subaki scowled and Midoriko's forehead scrunched up. Davis leapt over the side of the ship, much like Damien had, and sauntered over to the two females, ignoring his first mate.

"Oh, Captain. I don't want to pull you away from your duties!" Midoriko said, trying not to let her dismay show. Subaki held back a growl and stomped her foot. 'It's not fair! This is mine and Midoriko's time!' She thought venomously as she tried to stop herself from hitting the closest thing, that being Midoriko herself.

"Not at all! I was going to go exploring anyway." He said flashing a triumphant grin at a glaring Damien. Midoriko sighed. 'Damn. Looks like were going out there anyway…' She thought, ignoring the slight fear building within herself. "Well, alright then…lets go…" She said her shoulders slumping slightly.

Subaki rushed forward and latched onto her sister once again, glaring back at the two males in contempt. "You stay behind us and make sure nothing attacks from behind!" She stated, much to the anger of the Captain and his first mate, and the dismay of her aggrieved sister. And so, the four irked people, ruthlessly thrown into a horrible situation, began their trek into the jungle and into a nightmare that would take their lives.

:Across the ocean and in the present:

Ginta glanced at his brother and partner in shock as they listened to the female wolf detective standing beside the flea youkai that had caught them before. 'Apparently, there is more going on then a simple plan crash.' He thought as he again turned his eyes to the pair talking in low tones.

Hakkaku, meanwhile, shifted uncomfortably on the balls of his feet as he crouched down under the counter of the small, abandoned room they had snuck into. He looked over at Ginta and wondered when they could leave the stuffy lab.

"So what you're saying is…the plane didn't crash because of what was released to the public?" The detective, Myojin, asked the red haired female.

"That's it precisely. I would tell you more, unfortunately, we do not work together. Here is my card, call me if you ever do decide to take me up on my offer." The female said as she turned her heel and walked out the side door leading into the lab. Myojin stood there a moment more before taking out a cell phone and dialing a number.

"Jaken? Yes, I believe you have made a grave mistake. Meet me in an hour at the usual place. I have much to discuss with you." Without waiting for an answer, the leader of the Taisho Industries search party closed the phone and walked into the lab and out the door. Ginta breathed out a sigh of relief and Hakkaku fell back on his butt and stared up at the bleached ceiling.

"Come on, Hakkaku! We have to follow that Myojin! He might give us more information!" Ginta exclaimed as he leapt to his feet. Hakkaku growled in annoyance and his stomach echoed him. "Ginta!" He whined, "I'm starving! Can't we go eat first?"

Ginta rolled his eyes and shook his head. "We can eat later! Kouga is in trouble! Didn't you hear that chick?" he asked as he stood up and crept over to the window the two of them had climbed through to get in. Hakkaku whimpered slightly and followed him.

:Farther downtown:

Miroku stared down at the polished desk his hands rested on. Many thoughts raced through his head. All of them centering over the new information his detective had given him. Across from him sat an angry Sango. Miroku had explained all about youkai and how he had figured out about them. He had also explained his spiritual powers and how they worked.

"Does Kagome know about youkai?" She asked tersely and awaited the response. Miroku frowned even more and shook his head. "No. I kept her from knowing the truth and I fear this may prove to be a problem."

"Why?" Sango asked, her angry face softening slightly in fear for her friend. Miroku looked up and realized he had voiced the second part out loud. He sighed and sat back in his chair. "The owners of Taisho Industries are youkai. One of them is, in fact, the Taiyoukai of the west. Of course, he had to retire that title due to the current circumstances." Miroku stopped and tried to think of how he could voice his thoughts without alarming his wife any further.

"Not to mention, it is…er…spring. So…" Sango frowned and stood up. "Houshi…you better not be holding anything back from me. Just spit it out!" Miroku looked up at her sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. "Well, Sango. It's close to mating season for youkai." he stated simply.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" She asked as she glared into the, now sweating, mans eyes. Miroku gulped and tried to explain it to her. 'This should be easy…I'm notorious for being a pervert for crying out loud!' "Well, Sango. Um, the mating season is when youkai tend to loose control of their, er, morals and uh…" He trailed off again and Sango's eyes widened as she put the pieces together.

"You mean Kagome is out there on a deserted island with a bunch of horny youkai?"

:Somewhere else:

Kagura glanced down at the water zooming below her. She shifted her sitting position on her downy soft feather, trying not to think of where she was headed. She smiled slightly as she took in the clear blue water and clear blue skies. The scent of ocean spray flowed around her and the soft sounds of the waves slapping on top of each other teased at her sensitive ears.

'If only I wasn't on my way to Hell.' She mourned quietly to herself and sighed.

:with a "new" face:

Kikyou glared at the man standing in front of her in slight irritation. "Look, I know you're supposed to be some important business man, but I do not care! I am the girlfriend of Inuyasha West! Do you know what that means?"

Hojo sighed as he tried to keep his temper from exploding. He was sorely tempted to leap at the bitch before him and punch her in that overly made face. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, nearly gagging on the overwhelmingly perfumed air. Hojo opened his eyes again and looked into the girls face. 'She looks slightly like my Kagome.' He thought and smirked.

"I'm sorry miss, but I believe we got off on the wrong foot." His smirk changed slightly and became more oily. Obviously, Kikyou took it as he was already falling under her "charms" and flashed him a coquettish smile herself. "Yes, lets start over." She said standing over his desk, flashing her cleavage at him.

Hojo chuckled to himself as he kissed the back of the girls hand. 'At least I will have some entertainment until my love is found again.'

:Across the sea on the island:

Kagome watched as Midoriko paused in her telling once again and frowned over at her. "Kagome, it seems we've run out of time, for now. You're going to have to go into a deeper sleep to heal appropriately."

"What do you mean?" Kagome asked in confusion and tilted her head to the side. Midoriko smiled at the young woman and shook her head. "I am not allowed to say anymore. We will talk again, for now, you need to rest."

Kagome panicked slightly as her vision blurred into a swirl of green and black, until there was nothing but complete darkness.

:XP:

Ok, I'm going to end it for now…I don't really like this chapter as much as I thought I would…maybe I'll change it later. Anyway, it's coming along slowly cause I don't want to end it as quickly.

The next chapter is when the good stuff happens! Midoriko's story will come to an end, Gabriel will find where Kagome is hiding, Inuyasha and Kouga are confronted by Michael and Sesshoumaru finds Naraku. Not to mention, everyone now knows where our hero's are and are on the way to saving them! I told you it would be good!

Please Read and Review! I need to know if I should continue!


	7. The Ending

A Tempting Fate

Chapter 7: The Ending

By Kaguya's Chaos

Sesshoumaru walked slowly passed the numerous tropical trees that dotted the shoreline of the island. His thoughts spun with the new information he had received from the strange voice in his head. 'Kagome's a miko? How can I not have sense this? Is she hiding it? Does she knew that we're youkai? Does she know youkai exist?'

His thoughts spiraled on, even as he used all his senses to search for the despicable hanyou in charge of this whole fiasco. His silver hair shifted slightly in the wind. A strange scent reached his nose and, for a wild moment, Sesshoumaru thought it was Naraku. Taking in the scent once again, he quickly deducted it wasn't completely the hanyou's scent.

'_**Yes, that's the ally I was telling you about.'**_

The voice once again intruded on Sesshoumaru's mind as the inu-youkai turned in the direction the scent was coming from. 'So the hanyou's reinforcements have arrived.' he stated to the voice more then asked.

'_**Yes. But I feel that this "ally" will be more of a hindrance then a help to the hanyou.'**_

'What do you mean?'

'_**The wind witch hates the hanyou more then you and your fellow survivors do at this moment. Even more then I, myself, do.'**_

'What do you mean? Why would she hate the hanyou? Who exactly are you?'

'_**All in due time, Taiyoukai. All in due time.'**_

'Why can't you just give straight answers?' Sesshoumaru growled out as he searched the skies for the wind witch heading for the island.

'_**Because the questions you ask cannot be answered with approximate answers. Just yet anyway.'**_

Sesshoumaru stifled yet another growl for the fourth time in little over an hour and tried to calm down. His golden eyes flashed as he caught sight of a woman on a giant feather flying toward the island. A small predatory smirk stretched his handsome face as he realize the true hunt would begin the minute the woman landed on the island.

'She will lead me to Naraku.'

:Over with Kouga and Inuyasha:

Kouga sighed once again for the twentieth time in the last hour. In front of him, Inuyasha was on all fours trying to sniff out a trail that they hadn't already taken. Kouga crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the tree behind him for a better position.

Why doesn't Kouga help, you ask? Well, lets go back a few minutes after they left the stream, shall we?

:Back an hour:

Kouga jogged after Inuyasha with a gloating smirk on his face. "Admit it, dog-breath! You fell and got stuck in quicksand!" He yelled out to the irate hanyou, who just sped up and tried to ignore the idiot following him. Naturally, the damn wolf's grating voice was getting to him. "How could you be so stupid as to-"

"Shut the hell up, Kouga! At least I wasn't raped by monkeys!" Inuyasha interrupted as he slid to a stop. Kouga stopped as well and flushed.

"They didn't rape me! I escaped before-" he quickly cut himself off and Inuyasha smirked in a demented sort of glee.

"So you were attacked by love-sick monkeys! I knew it!" Inuyasha shouted as he stopped in his tracks and laughed at the angered and embarrassed youkai. Kouga grit his teeth and tried to ignore the laughing insults the hanyou was spewing from his mouth.

"At least I was attacked by something with a brain!" Kouga retorted just as he was at his breaking point. It was now Inuyasha's turn to flush in embarrassed anger.

"You know what, wolf-boy? I don't need you following me around! Go away!" Inuyasha yelled as he tried not to show how much that last comment actually stung his pride.

Kouga frowned and stood up even straighter. "I wasn't following you! I was simply going the same way and you were in front of me!"

"Yeah well, go look in another direction!"

"Make me!"

:present:

And since then, Kouga has been following Inuyasha just to piss him off.

Inuyasha stood from his crouching position and started walking in a random direction. Kouga shook his head and relaxed further into the base of the tree before opening his mouth to, again irritate Inuyasha. "We've already been in that direction, dumb-ass."

Inuyasha let out a slow even breath and tried to keep from jumping at the wolf with his claws. "Well then, Mr. Asshole-That-Won't-Shut-Up. Why don't YOU pick a fucking direction?" Kouga just smirked and stretched. He opened his mouth to retort when a cold voice interrupted them.

"Such language, Inuyasha." Both turned their heads to see one of their targets floating above them with an amused smirk.

"I had really hoped you two would have made this game a little more fun. Unfortunately, you were so loud it was easy to find you. Not to mention you don't cover your tracks and you don't hide either." Michael said with a tone of high disappointment.

Inuyasha snarled at the youkai and Kouga leapt to his feet. Michael grinned once again and slowly descended to the ground. "But, then again, cat and mouse has never been my favorite game. I much rather prefer just coming out a killing my prey. Wouldn't you agree?" He asked in a coldly sensuous voice and darted forward, signaling the start of one of the many battles that would occur on the island.

:Inside Kagome's mind:

Kagome stared at the strange blue light floating in front of her. It radiated warmth like a campfire, but it also called out to her like a long lost friend. 'Is this my inner power?' She asked herself as she stretched her arms out to it. No answer came to her, nor was she expecting one. Just as her arms got near enough to touch the orb of light, a searing pain made itself known on her injured leg and, at the same time, a comforting warmth was spreading through her body toward the pained leg.

'Are my holy powers healing me? Why does it hurt so much?' She again asked into the void that surrounded her. And once again, no answer came. She watched in curiosity as some of the blue light floated away from the ball it seemed to be formed into and weaved around her arms. It slowly danced up her shoulders and twined itself into her hair, wrapping gently around her neck and descending down her body.

Kagome watched as the blue threads swirled about her form, as if seeking something in particular. They then came across the pained area on her leg and stopped their search, trying to force themselves into her very flesh. All at once, Kagome felt the pain recede and the warmth within her body fill her mind as well. Just as she was finally used to the gentle waves of comfort, they were ruthlessly torn from her and the black void once again took precedence.

A short time later, unknown to Kagome for however long it really was, light and color started to swirl about her and painted the lovely meadow where Kagome had first met Midoriko at. Kagome gazed about her with a small sense of relief and sighed as she sat down, surprised she had been standing in the first place. 'I could have sworn I was lying down!' Kagome snapped out of her thoughts as the sound of footsteps walking toward her made her turn to see the ever familiar form of Midoriko.

"It is good to see you again, Kagome. How do you feel?" She asked Kagome smiled and stood. Midoriko smiled as well and hugged Kagome then proceeded to sit down next to her. Kagome grinned and reclined in the grass. "Much better now that that leg wound is healed. It is healed, right?" She asked sitting up again as the thought that that was all just an illusion filled her mind.

Midoriko laughed and nodded her head. "Yes, your leg has healed, among other things." She answered and stared off around the field. Kagome frowned and tilted her head to the side. "Other things?" She questioned and Midoriko turned to her with a confused expression on her face.

"The poison, dear. The one that damn hanyou, Naraku, injected into you?"

Kagome turned away from the miko and stared into space. 'The man Naraku was a hanyou and he had injected me with poison.' She thought to herself as another thought also occurred. 'No one told me I was poisoned! They let me believe that it was a damn pressure point incident that cause all the weird symptoms! Oooo! When I wake up I am going to kill them for lying to me!'

"...it really was a good thing your body pushed it out, because there really wasn't any cure. You see, the boys are being lead on a wild goose-chase." Midoriko continued, not realizing that Kagome was lost in her murderous thoughts. Kagome snapped out of her daze as she heard the last sentence come out of the miko's mouth.

"There's no cure! I'm going to die?" She shouted as she shot to her feet and Midoriko gave her a puzzled/exasperated look.

"No, Kagome. Your body already reacted to the poison and pushed it out of your system through the cut on your leg. Then your holy powers healed the cut when it was done." Midoriko again explained and Kagome calmed down enough to apologize sheepishly. 'That must have been when I touched my inner power...'

"Now then, shall we finish the story where we last left off?" Midoriko asked and was pleased when Kagome nodded her head vigorously, effectively snapped out of her wondering thoughts. "I believe we last left off with Damien, Davis, Subaki and I heading out toward the center of the island..."

:Midoriko's story:

Midoriko felt a chill go up her spine and tried to hide it from the other three people with her. Subaki was oblivious to anything around her, other then the fact that there were two, unwanted mind you, males walking behind her, thinking about her sister.

Damien stared at the surrounding trees, trying to remember the way they came so they could go back with ease. Davis, however, was staring at Midoriko, not at all thinking about anything to do with trees. Subaki turned and glared at the Captain as she felt him bump into her. Her eyes widened incredulously as he then walked passed her and closer to Midoriko. 'What the hell?' Both Subaki and Damien thought at the same time.

Midoriko, however, was concentrating on the deep feeling of evil around her, not noticing the drama building up. She unconsciously wrung her hands and looked about her in a nervous way. 'Calm down 'Riko...nothing bad is going to happen...we're just walking into the uncharted, possibly youkai infested jungle on a remote island in the middle of nowhere. Nothing bad is going to happen.' She said to herself slightly snorting at her wry sense of humor.

"Lovely island, is it not?" Davis whispered into Midoriko's ear and Midoriko jumped and whirled to face the handsome captain. "Y-yes it is!" She squeaked out and then coughed to cover up the nervous giggle about to follow it. 'Good Lord! He scared me! Where did he pop out from? Why is he so close?' She thought as she smiled slightly and looked away, pretending to concentrate on where she was going.

Without meaning to, both Davis and Midoriko had sped up and were now farther from a fuming Damien and furious Subaki. It was Damien that noticed the distance first. His eyes widened and he quickened his pace. Subaki did likewise, not seeing the tree root waiting to snag her foot. She felt the traitorous plant catch her foot and her face rapidly descending to pay homage to the slightly damp soil. However, her descent was stopped by a strong, muscular arm wrapped firmly around her waist. Subaki looked up into the slightly annoyed dark eyes of Damien and tried not to grin like an idiot.

"Oh, uh, thank you!" Subaki squeaked out and tried to push down the butterflies fluttering around in her stomach and the blush screaming to cover her face. Damien nodded and let go of her, making sure she was stable first. He then stood away from her and rushed after the rapidly disappearing Midoriko and Davis. Subaki watched him go for a second, not noticing the goofy grin attached to her flushed face.

'I never noticed that Damien had such strong arms! Or that he looks so delicious in those tight pants!' Subaki thought as she tried, in vain, to control her blush. Her middle still tingled where his arms had wrapped around her and her mind was whirling with the new sensations she was feeling. 'Do I like him?' She asked herself as she tried to race after the three leaving her in the dust. 'I...I think so...'

:I'll end it here for now:

KC: Don't I just make you mad sometimes?

:With Hojo and Kikyou:

Hojo looked across the desk at the woman almost identical to his Kagome. Kikyou looked up from the papers she was currently reading and watched as the business man looked down at his own papers. 'Hmm, he's not as handsome as Inuyasha, but I bet he's just as rich. Besides, he OWNS his own company. So he has to be richer the Inuyasha.' Kikyou debated within her mind as she tried to decide whether a fling with Hojo would be beneficial or not.

Just as she was coming up with a plan to get the man in bed with her, a sharp knock sounded on the door, followed by the said door swinging open wildly, banging rather harshly on the wall behind it. Hojo looked up in slight anger to see a very pissed off Onigumo Price panting in front of his desk.

"We have a problem." He said in a low voice and Hojo sighed. He turned to the angry female sitting in the chair beside a fuming Onigumo and tried to smile politely. "I apologize, Miss. Kikyou. It seems I have business to take care of. Here is my home phone number, please call me if you need anything else." He said with an oily overcast to his normally over-sugary voice.

Onigumo glanced at the overdone female slightly behind him and raised an eyebrow. 'Not a bad looking whore he's got here...' He thought to himself as he watched her butt sway out the door, shutting it quietly. A slightly twisted smile curved his lips as he though of all the things he'd like to do to that petite piece of work. With a slight shake of his head, Onigumo looked back over at Hojo and allowed his expression to show his anger.

"Well? What the hell is it, Price?" Hojo snarled as he sat back down in his chair. Onigumo clenched his teeth and flung himself down into the nearest chair. "That damn Myojin bailed out on us!" He nearly shouted as he glared at his current employer. Hojo froze in his seat and sat up straight.

"What?" He asked quietly and Onigumo felt his rage, along with his blood, freeze in his veins. Hojo narrowed his eyes and leaned forward. "What do you mean 'he bailed'?"

Onigumo felt a slight trickle of sweat shift down his neck and strained from wiping it away. Because, to move means to draw attention to him from the predator before him, and to do that would mean certain death.

"Uh...Myojin, as well as Taisho Industries says they aren't working with us anymore and have switched to aide that damn chick investigating for Shikon Inc." Onigumo said trying to keep the nervousness out of his voice. Hojo frowned and leaned back in his chair. His normally chocolate eyes were a cold black and his handsome face looked deadly with rage.

"I want you to get someone to tail the bitch, then. There is nothing we can do about Taisho Industries. After all, we didn't sign a contract saying we would work together. I do, however, want a spy placed inside Taisho Industries, just in case. I want a report if anything new or unusual is found, do I make myself clear, Price?" Hojo finished his orders and Onigumo leapt to his feet. "Yes, of course." He said and nearly ran out the door.

Sure, Onigumo was a fearless man, but the look in Hojo Masaru's eyes was anything but sane, and Onigumo rather liked his life. No matter how dull it used to be and probably will be once this case is over with. After all, mercenaries like him don't get much work these days.

Hojo sighed out a breath and leaned back in his chair as he watched the scared man run out of his office. His coal-like eyes turned to stare at the wall in front of his oak desk. "So, Higurashi wants to play it that way, eh?" He said out loud to himself as the image of the black-haired man with violet eyes quickly came to mind. "Two can play that game."

:With Myoga and Jaken, before they told Onigumo their decision:

Myoga sat at the back table in his favorite bar and watched the people coming and going. No one bothered him, and that's the way he liked it. He was social, he had to admit, just not in this place. A waitress came up and asked his order. Quickly telling her "The Usual" and he watched as she walked off to get him a Bloody Mary.

It wasn't long after he got his drink that Jaken came slithering in, looking like a sea-sick toad. Myoga pointedly ignored the sour looking shorty and took another sip of his drink. Jaken frowned even more-so and thumped his walking stick on the floor, trying to gain the flea youkai's attention. Myoga looked up at Mr. Grumpy-Pants and smirked a little. "Impatient, aren't we?" He asked and immediately felt the toad stiffen.

"Listen here, you old fool! I came here because you said you had better information on where Sesshoumaru-sama is! So stop messing around and get to the point of this ridiculous meeting!" Jaken took in a deep breath, as if preparing to say more when Myoga held up his hands in a show of defeat. "Alright, alright. You know that Shikon Inc.'s President, Miss Higurashi, was on that plane crash, do you not?" He asked and watched as Jaken rolled his bulbous eyes. "Yes, yes!"

Myoga took a deep breath and began his brief report. "Well, her company has sent out their own search party, and it seems they are a lot farther along in discovering where the survivors of the crash are. The lead detective, Miss Timbre, has already deducted what, or shall I say who, brought down the plane."

Jaken frowned and leaned in closer. Myoga frowned and sat back, trying to get the toads smell out of his nose. "Well? What brought down the plane?" Jaken nearly screeched, causing some of the bar's patrons to turn to them sharply in curiosity. Myoga sighed and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Unfortunately, she said she could not disclose anymore information because we are working with the slime ball who works for that fake bastard, Masaru." Myoga finished as he again lifted his drink to quench his thirst. Of course, despite the beverage's name, it had no blood in it and, therefore, left the flea a bit disappointed.

Jaken hissed and sat back as well. Myoga watched the toad and grinned. He had him where he wanted him. The whole past week, the two of them had been fighting. Myoga had not wanted to work with Masaru or his lead detective, Price. But Jaken, momentary guardian of the company, called the shots and said the team up would be a great help. Why the little toad was in charge of the company was beyond him. He was just glad he wasn't the one in charge. Lord knows how Sesshoumaru will react once he comes back to find out that his hard earned company was reduced to shambles because of this smelly idiot.

Anyway, back to the issue at hand. Now that Miss Timbre had stepped forward, it gave Myoga a great chance to ditch the sly human and his insane employer and actually get somewhere in finding his Lord Inuyasha and Lord Sesshoumaru. Jaken also knew that siding with the company, Shikon Inc., would be a great asset. Not only in the search for the survivors, but also for future dealings. If they cooperated with them, they might be able to form a sort of business deal in the future. After all Shikon Inc and Taisho Industries were the most powerful companies today.

Jaken sighed and pretended defeat. He leaned on his walking stick and turned a wary stare on the flea detective. "Alright, alright! You win! We will join up with Shikon Inc. This time we will sign a contract, and make sure they do as well!" Jaken said as he stood and hobbled out of the bar. Myoga grinned then turned to the two moving potted plants behind him.

"You can come out now." He said in an amused voice as the two naked gumshoes from before sheepishly stood up from their hiding places. "Well, well, well. What have we here?" Myoga asked out loud as he watched the two fidget. He indicated the two seats in front of him and the two boys sat down.

"What is your business in this case?" Myoga asked as he again lifted his drink for a sip, only to realize it was all gone. Placing it back down he sighed in mourning of the empty drink. The younger looking one sighed as well and looked the old detective in the eye. "Our brother, who was on the force, was one of the survivors from the crash." He stated and Myoga nodded his head wisely.

"Ah yes, a Mr. Kouga Wolf, I do believe?" He asked and both nodded.

"Well, you see, sir, the captain refused to send anyone out to search for Kouga. So, me and Hakkaku went out on our own. It all went down-hill from there, sir." Myoga nodded and then leaned forward. "Boys? Do you want a job?" He asked and both ex-police officers exchanged wary glances.

"If it means finding our brother, we'd do anything." The younger one said and Myoga smiled at them. "Welcome to the team." He said as he stood and motioned for both boys to follow him. "We have some work to do." He finished as the three of them headed out the door. Myoga grinned at the nearly tangible excitement pouring off the two boys. Ideas were already filling his head with what work to put them to.

:With Miroku and Sango, after Myoga joins up:

Miroku rubbed at the headache pounding at his poor temples. Sango had ranted and raved for hours over the fact that poor, innocent Kagome was trapped on a deserted island during the youkai mating season. With two, or possibly more, horny youkai. Miroku groaned again as he still heard her echoing screech as she demanded to know why youkai had a mating season.

He had tried to explain that he himself wasn't an expert on this sort of thing, but she would hear nothing of it. She had yelled out things like he was supposed to know cause he was a pervert, or something like that. Finally, after more then an hour of trying to convince her that he knew just as much as she did now, she had left his office with watery eyes and muttering about mating seasons.

Sighing again, Miroku was just about to pack his suitcase up for the night when a loud buzzing sound came from the intercom on his desk. Jumping a foot in the air and then answering it, Miroku asked Hachi what he wanted.

"Mr. Higurashi, there is a Miss Timbre and a Mr. Myojin here to see you." His secretary nearly stuttered and Miroku sighed. "Send them in." He replied and sat back down in his chair, his briefcase still only half-packed. Before Miroku could scoot himself and the chair back into his desk the door to his office swung open and the two detectives entered.

Miroku indicated them to sit in the chairs before him and awaited for someone to start talking. Ayame was the first to say anything. "Hello again, Mr. Higurashi." She said politely and took in the serious face the pervert had donned, instead of the goofy lecherous look he usually wore. This was indeed time for seriousness.

"Hello, to you as well, Ayame. And I presume you are Myoga Myojin, the leading detective for Taisho Industries?" Miroku asked as he looked the older man in the eye. Myoga instantly could tell this man, as young as he was, was indeed an honest individual. He nodded his head and smiled. "I am indeed he." He said and was pleased when the young man smiled back.

"He has agreed to join up with us and leave the joint effort with Price and Masaru." Ayame said and Myoga watched as Miroku's eyes flashed at the mention of Hojo's last name. 'There is something else going on, other then competitive companies.' Myoga thought as he nodded to this statement. He brought his briefcase onto his lap and pulled out the contract that Jaken and himself had drawn up in preparation for this meeting.

Miroku looked over the contract and nodded his head. He did not take out a pen to sign it with though. He looked up sheepishly and pressed on the intercom. "Hachi? Could you send for Sango?" He asked and looked away from Ayame's amused expression. Myoga looked slightly confused as to what was going on and raised a bushy eyebrow.

Miroku coughed and tried to smile as he summed up the courage to explain. "My wife, er, needs to read over the contract as well. She is also in charge of the company while Miss Higurashi is away."

"And a good thing too! You would have sunk the company on the first day if Kagome hadn't put me in charge!" Sango declared as she sailed in through the open doors and up to the side of his desk. Miroku cringed slightly and tried to keep a dignified air.

Myoga hid his grin behind his hand and coughed slightly. Sango turned to look at him and smiled slightly. "I'm Sango Higurashi, Kagome Higurashi's personal assistant." She introduced herself and reached for the document Miroku was handing to her. Reading over it quickly she nodded her head in an assenting way.

"Sounds good to me." She said to Miroku and he nodded in agreement. "One thing though. We would like to be told where our cousin is when you find her. We want to be with the team to go and find her." Miroku said as Sango watched the old man cautiously.

Myoga grinned and nodded his head. "Of course." He said and they made the minor adjustment on the contract. Both parties signed, as did Ayame and Myoga went on his way to tell Jaken the transaction was a success.

Ayame followed shortly after and prepared to fill him in on what her team had found. She stepped into the elevator with Myoga and nearly jumped out of her skin when her cell phone went off. She flipped it open and answered in her usual sweet way. "What the hell do you want?"

"M-miss Timbre? Uh, I have the results for the testing. I know where Miss Higurashi is."

:With Ginta and Hakkaku:

Ginta heaved a sigh as he tried to follow the rapidly disappearing Onigumo Price. Beside him, Hakkaku was grumbling to himself about having to follow a stupid human around all sneaky like. Ginta sighed again and shook his head. "Doesn't do any good to get all angry about it now. At least we're getting paid for tailing this guy." He whispered to his brother and Hakkaku immediately shut up. It was true. They were getting paid by Taisho Industries to follow around Price and report back what they find.

Their first paycheck went to clothes, of course, and Myoga had treated them to a sort of dinner/lunch thing. So they were good to go. Hakkaku let out a hiss of pain as his knee connected with the wall they were currently hiding behind. Ginta glanced at him from his position at the corner and glared.

"Shh! Keep it down! He might hear you!" Ginta hissed at him and turned to look again only to stare into a broad chest covered in a black shirt. He slowly looked up, already afraid of what he would find. Onigumo Price stared down at the boys before him and tried to hide his amusement.

"Now why, would you want to follow me?" He asked in a low voice with his eyebrow raised. Hakkaku swiveled his head to stare in horror at the man they had been tailing since this morning. Ginta, the brains of the operation, swallowed his fear and put his hands up. "We weren't following you, sir." He said hastily and looked over at the man in a trench coat that had been walking behind Price the whole time.

"We were following him." He said and looked up into Onigumo's eyes with an innocent twinkle in them. Onigumo frowned and leaned forward. "And why are you following him?" He asked as he too glanced at the man in the trench coat slowly sliding from view. Ginta watched as well and let out an exasperated sigh. "There goes another one." He said in a slightly angry tone. He turned his head and glared into Onigumo's face.

"Happy? You made us miss another one! How are we gonna eat tonight!" He said, allowing his voice to slowly slide into a more street talk tone. Onigumo raised an eyebrow, falling for the act completely. "You're pick-pockets." He said as a statement as he stood away from the scraggly looking boys and looked them over in thought.

They did, indeed, look like street thieves. Their hair was not tamed at all, their clothes looked like something from a bargain-bin at Goodwill, and they had a stench about them that spoke of not bathing in weeks. Onigumo leaned back even further as he finally picked up the smell of them and reached into his pocket. He took out a twenty and handed it to the boy.

"Here. For making you lose your target." he said simply as he walked away. Ginta looked after him and tried to keep his face neutral. Hakkaku, however was near having a fit. When they were sure Price was far enough away that they could talk without being heard, Hakkaku let it rip. "How the HELL did you do that? How did you make him believe that we were just your average thieves?"

Ginta smirked and huffed on his nails, rubbing them on the front of his cheap shirt. "It's skills, my friend. Skills." He answered and ignored Hakkaku's annoyed expression. "We won't be able to tail him anymore today, but I should say the information we have is pretty good." Ginta continued as he remembered the conversation him and Hakkaku had over-heard in Hojo Masaru's office. (They had climbed into the air ducts.)

Hakkaku shook his head and decided to drop it. He was tired and was sure he smelled like an old dumpster. "Come on, Hakkaku. Mr. Myojin said we could have a room at the Wolf's Den Inn." Ginta said as if reading his mind. Hakkaku stood up straight and grinned again. "Yeah! Lets go!"

:With Rin and Shippo:

Shippo let out a soft grunt as he once again lifted Kagome's head and Rin lifted her legs. They had been trying to move her to the back of the cave and away from the puddle of blood and poison for over fifteen minutes and so far they had made it halfway to the very back. Rin sighed and plopped down after they had moved Kagome a grand total of three feet.

"This is fine right here, Shippo. I don't think we haveta move her ALL the way to the back." Rin huffed as she leaned back on her hands and tried not to collapse. 'Don't get me wrong!' She thought, 'I love Kagome to death. It's just that she's so heavy!' Shippo nodded his head, agreeing with her thoughts as he too collapsed beside their friend's motionless body.

"Hey, Rin? Do you feel like someone is watching us?" Shippo asked into the comfortable silence and Rin shook her head. "No...why?"

"Cause I feel like someone is watching me."

In the very back of the cave, sitting against the wall, the dark haired sailor watched over the three with a small smile.

:Back inside Midoriko's story:

Midoriko sat down with a huff and leaned against the tree behind her. They had walked on for a while before finally stopping at a quaint little pond with a waterfall. The clear cool water invited her feet to relax as she took refuge from the sweltering heat and humidity that accompanied most tropical islands.

Subaki sat beside her with her shoes off and her skirt rolled up so she could comfortably rest her aching feet in the water. Midoriko watched as her little sister kept stealing glances at Damien from under her lashes. 'Does...does Subaki have a crush on Damien?' Midoriko asked herself as she tried to keep the jealousy rising in her down.

'No...must be my imagination.' She thought, putting the unsettling notion out of her mind. "Alright, Subaki. Lets start off by meditating." Midoriko said as she crossed her legs and sat up straight. Subaki sighed and did likewise, both instantly closing their eyes and trying to reach inner peace. Neither achieving it due to their troubled thoughts.

(Inside Midoriko's mind)

'She can't like Damien. The whole time we've been in their acquaintances she has shown nothing but disdain. Maybe...it was just a ruse? Maybe she has been hiding her feelings for Damien? Does...Damien like her? Maybe I should step aside and let them...' Midoriko trailed off at this thought and the nasty little voice in her head reared its head.

'_**I liked Damien first! It's not fair! Why should I step aside when all Subaki does is treat him like the ground she walks upon?'**_

'That's not right. Even though she does treat him like dirt, it does not mean that's the way she feels about him. Maybe she just has trouble showing her true emotions.'

'_**So? Why should we allow that shallow little-'**_

'Enough! I'll not have you talking that way about our sister.'

'_**You know that's how you really feel...'**_

'Is not. I'm supposed to be meditating, not quarrelling with myself.'

'_**Now who's fault is that?'**_

'Just shut up.'

(Inside Subaki's mind)

'But Midoriko likes him! I-I can't like him! It's not fair to 'Riko if I steal him from under her nose.'

'_**Steal him from under her nose? She's not moving in on him! She just acts like a shy little girl! It's a wasted opportunity if we just try to forget about him.'**_

'But...but...'Riko...'

'_**Won't mind. She doesn't need a guy anyway! They'll just steal her kindness and attention away from us. We won't have OUR 'Riko anymore.'**_

Subaki let an evil smile curve her lips as she realized that this was most definitely true. No guy could ever be good enough for Midoriko. But that in no way meant that she couldn't move in on them herself.

Damien watched as the girls slid into their meditation and tried to stifle a sigh at the sight of Midoriko's soft lips parted slightly and her cheeks slightly flushed. Beside him, he felt Davis shift and turned to look at him.

Davis and Damien were brothers, looking nearly alike. If it hadn't been for the scar that delicately curved the side of Davis' forehead, they could have been twins. But Davis was a full year older then Damien and they both usually got along quite well, except for now.

They had never liked the same girl before and both were attracted to different things, but this time was different. "What are you playing at, Davis?" Damien asked under his breath as he caught his brothers green eyes in his own. Davis lifted an eyebrow and frowned. "One could ask the same of you, little brother." He whispered back and Damien scowled at him.

He nodded his head to the side, silently asking for them to go a little farther away so they wouldn't be heard. Both men stood and walked out of hearing range but both could still see the girls in case trouble arose.

"Back off, Davis. Midoriko isn't the type of girl to woo, bed and then leave behind." Damien threatened as he stared his brother down. Davis frowned and straightened to his full height.

"Then why are you after her, Damien?" He asked in a low voice and Damien scowled back. Both of them stared into the others forest green eyes, looking for a weakness in the other. Damien looked away first, his eyes settling on the green fern growing by his foot. "I...I think I love her, Davis." he said hesitatingly, slowly gaining courage as he spoke, "And I won't give her up to you so easily." He finished with a challenge and Davis raised an eyebrow, silently accepting.

Both men were again drawn from a battle of wills by the sweet sound of the woman who had caught their hearts. "Damien-san? Davis-san? We're ready to head back now..." Midoriko trailed off as she watched the two sailors walk out of the surrounding wild life and into the small clearing. Subaki stood beside her, silently regarding Damien through veiled eyes.

All four began their trek back to the ship, not aware of the destruction and devastation they would confront at their destination.

:XP:

KC: Ladies and gentlemen, I must pause here, cause I am about HALF way through the chapter and I have no idea if the whole thing will load...I seriously debated whether or not I should cut the chapter in half...but I won't.

Anyway, continue on!

:XP:

:Up in the sky:

Kagura sighed for the hundredth time that morning. Dawn had just shifted into late morning and already she wished for a caramel latte with whip cream and chocolate syrup. 'Dammit Starbucks! Where are you when I need you! Oh yeah...in civilization! Damn remote island. Damn evil Naraku. Damn stupid curse! May you all rot in He-'

'My, my. Temper, temper. Hurry up, Kagura. I do not need to hear any excuses or anything of the sort. You are late and I do not accept tardiness.' Naraku's voice seeped into Kagura's mind, effectively making her inner rant run dry.

'Yeah, yeah. Keep your monkey suit on.' She thought back as she sped up just a tiny bit.

She didn't notice the silver blur racing underneath her. She did, however, catch sight of a pack of monkeys holding onto a strange white piece of cloth as if it were a gold necklace. (Kouga's no doubt...) She cocked an eyebrow and tried not to snicker. 'So it seems the monkeys have chosen a new male to worship...unless Naraku got a white silk shirt...' She thought, distinctly remembering the way the monkeys had held a lock of Naraku's hair in almost the exact same way. 'No wonder he's in such a bad mood...his fan club ditched him!' She cackled to herself as she slowly drifted to concealed ritual grounds.

The very same one's that Kouga had found before this whole thing became disastrous.

:Back inside Midoriko's story:

Midoriko and Subaki walked side by side as they tried to act normal even with all the weird thought's floating through their heads. Damien and Davis walked behind the two distracted females in much the same way. Each was thinking of the other and all were thinking of their feelings.

Subaki tried to conceal the wicked gleam in her eye from her sister and hid the small darkness growing in her aura. 'What 'Riko don't know can't hurt her!' She thought happy, but dementedly so. Midoriko knew her sister was hiding something from her but thought it was just something as innocent as her crush on Damien. 'I knew it! She does like him!'

Damien glanced at a somber looking Davis every now and again. His emerald eyes glinted in slight suspicion as he tried to read his brothers expression. 'Will he leave Midoriko-san alone?' He asked himself as he desperately hoped the answer was yes. 'I do not want to fight with him over a girl, but if it comes down to it, I will.'

Davis meanwhile was pulled from his own thoughts on the current situation when he realized that, even though they were now really close to the beach, he could not hear the sound of hammering, or of his men's voices. Slight confusion and a bit of panic rolled over him as he quickened his pace. He debated whether or not if he should tell the women to stay here while he went to check it out, or if he was just paranoid.

Unfortunately for him, the decision was made when they broke through the tree line to stare in horror at the scene before them. Mutilated bodies lay all around. Blood splatters covered the ship in a grotesque fashion and decorated the beach showing that some of the sailors and men had tried to escape whatever had attacked them. Decapitated bodies blindly reached for their still bleeding heads in a morbid sprawled look. Random arms and legs were scattered about as well, making it seem like there weren't any whole bodies left out there.

Subaki quickly whirled around and immediately began to vomit into the nearest bush. Midoriko felt her eyes water and her mouth grow dry in shock and panic. Damien could only stare in horrified confusion and Davis looked about the carnage with rage. Someone had killed his crew. Someone was going to die.

Midoriko, Damien and Davis all turned their attention to Subaki as she let out an earth-shattering scream and tumbled to the ground at their feet. Right above the bush Subaki had used as a toilet, pinned to the tree, was the only whole body from the apparent massacre. The sailors eyes had been pulled out, rather roughly if the torn and shattered sockets showed anything. His mouth hung open in a perpetual look of horror. His clothes had been torn from him and showed his mutilated flesh for all to see.

His right hand had no fingers left and his left hand didn't have a thumb. His left leg was missing all of it's toes and his right leg was missing his big toe. His knees were bent the wrong way and looked like the caps had been ripped out. Midoriko looked away as she realized the poor man had also been castrated.

But what had really stood out was the fact that a bloodied message had been cut into the man's chest. "And then there were four..."

:I'll end the story there for now:

KC: I was writing that part at 3 in the morning and I got a little creeped out...thinking about zombie movies and such...

:With Sango and Miroku:

Sango watched as the two detectives marched out of their office and into the hall beyond. Hope and anticipation sizzled through her at the thought of finding her dear "sister" after all. Miroku felt much the same, now that Taisho Industries had indeed decided to team up with them. Both were lost in their thoughts when Hachi decided to bust into the room.

"Mr. Higurashi! Ms. Timbre is back!"

Miroku stared at his secretary for a while and blinked. "What? Why?" He asked in slight confusion. Hachi shrugged and moved out of the way, just in time for a frantic Ayame and startled Myoga to burst through the doorway. Ayame ran up to the desk and tried to catch her breath.

"We know where Miss Higurashi is!" She shrieked and Sango dropped the papers in her hands. Miroku felt his stomach bottom out even as he stood up to face the panting wolf youkai. Myoga also turned to Ayame in surprise. She hadn't said why they were suddenly going back to the executives office, she just grabbed his arm and pressed the elevator buttons wildly.

"Where?" Miroku demanded as Sango grabbed a hold of his arm to keep herself steady.

"She's on an island in the Atlantic ocean, near the tropic of Cancer!" She stated as she grabbed a hold of the two CEO's and dragged them out of the office toward the waiting elevators. Myoga's mouth shut quickly and he whipped out his cell phone.

"Hello, Jaken? We know their location."

:With Jaken:

Jaken slammed the phone down and ran toward the door to the office he was sulking in. Papers and other important documents were strewn about in a haphazard way. Jaken flew out the doors to the office and nearly ran into his newly hired secretary, Bankotsu. He jumped out of the little toads way and tried to look thoroughly shocked.

"Where are you going so fast?" He asked smoothly and the harried Jaken answered without thought. "They found out where Sesshoumaru-sama is!" He shouted after him as he leapt down the stairs as fast as his little legs could carry him.

Bankotsu waited till he was out of sight before calmly walking over to the nearest phone and picking it up. He dialed a remembered number quickly and waited for the person on the other end to pick up.

"Hello, Price?"

He heard confirmation and quickly finished the report.

"Yes, they have found them. They are on their way to the lab."

:With Onigumo:

Onigumo grinned as he set the phone down and tapped his fingers on the counter top before him. He then picked up another phone and dialed his bosses phone number.

"Masaru? They found them. They're all heading toward the lab. Meet you there in ten minutes." He said shortly and placed the phone back on the receiver. He slowly stood and got his coat heading out the door of his apartment.

:With Hojo:

Hojo groaned in pleasure as the woman before him worked her magic. He heard his phone ring and gave a short growl of annoyance. Picking it up quickly, he stifled another groan. "What?" He rasped out and coughed to clear his throat.

As the person on the other line answered, Hojo sat up straight and pushed Kikyou off of him. "Right." He said and hung up the phone after the man's long narrative. Kikyou looked up at the man sitting before her and wiped her mouth.

"What is it?" She asked as she stood and straightened her clothes. Hojo glanced at her and set his own clothes to rights. "They found them." he said shortly as he gathered his things and left the office. Kikyou watched after him for a while then smirked. Her Inuyasha had been found.

:With Ginta and Hakkaku:

Ginta shoved his elbow into Hakkaku's abdomen for the third time since they had been cooped up in the damn vents of Onigumo's apartment. Hakkaku stifled his pain-filled moan and glared at his brother. He opened his mouth to, once again, complain. Ginta glared back and prepared to hit him again. Both were distracted as the phone rang in the apartment. They listened as Onigumo picked up his phone and spoke to someone, a creepy grin stretching his features. "Well done Bank." he said as he hung up the phone.

Ginta watched as a small chuckle came from the evil man and watched in rapt attention as he picked up the phone again and called someone they were aware that he worked for. Hojo Masaru. Hakkaku tried to stop his cry of triumph as Onigumo announced that the survivors had been found...or almost.

Onigumo hung up the phone and walked out the door of his apartment, whistling the whole way. Ginta let out a sigh, and as he did, the vent broke and both wolves came crashing down to the floor, covered in a thick layer of dust. Hakkaku jumped up and did his version of a sprained ankle happy dance. Ginta stood as well, grinning brightly.

"Come on, Hakkaku! We've got a lab to get to!"

:Inside the Midoriko story:

Midoriko, Subaki and Davis sat in a small camp on a cleaner part of the beach. Damien was off collecting small pieces of anything that would burn. He was close to the camp fire so they could see him if anything happened. Subaki clung to Midoriko, both girls slightly wishing it were Damien they were holding.

Davis stared into the fire with a solemn look. Determination set into every line of his body. Someone had killed off his crew. 'A monster? In both senses of the word...he is. Don't worry...I'll avenger your spirits...' He thought with a fire in his eyes that seemed hotter then the actual flame before him.

Damien piled the sticks together and sat down next to Midoriko. Subaki watched him with an intense look and Midoriko tried not to blush as she stared into the fire. 'People just died 'Riko! It is not time to start thinking about things like that!' Midoriko chastised herself and sighed. Subaki meanwhile was thinking the exact opposite.

'Mmmm. Look at those muscles! Kami, he's so hot!' She thought as she stared at the bare chest-ed man to her right. 'His body just seems to ripple!'

:With Kagome:

"We stayed up all that night, afraid of what might happen if we fell asleep. Damien kept urging Subaki and I to sleep for a while, but we wouldn't allow ourselves to. Davis was off in his own thoughts. I don't even think he realized dawn had come when we had all decided to go back and bury the dead sailors...or rather the pieces we could find of them.

"Davis refused to leave their graves for a while, said he wanted to pay his last respects. Damien said he wanted to go and make sure that no one else was hidden anywhere on the ship, in case we missed someone. Subaki said she wanted to go with...and I let her go. Alone. With the man I was falling in love with.

"I later realized what a mistake that would be. But for the moment I stayed behind Davis and watched as he muttered nonsense under his breath. At the time I thought that it was merely prayer of the American sort. This too was a mistake to assume this. He was steadily losing his mind, but that comes in later.

"We packed our stuff and got ready to set out. Where? I had no idea. Damien said it was unsafe to stay in the same place and I had silently agreed. Subaki had said it was a great plan to leave and Davis followed without saying anything."

:Back into the story:

Midoriko sat down as they stopped once again for the night. Two nights and three days on this island already and there were only four of them left. She felt drained, angry and sad all together. Her chocolate eyes slid over to a sight that made her stomach turn over. Subaki was clinging to Damien shrieking about being terrified of the night.

Midoriko felt her ire rise and shoved it down. She didn't really notice the struggle the poor man was putting up to get the clingy girl off of him. Davis sat with his eyes once again focused on the fire, plotting a way to get back at whoever had killed his men. 'We don't even know who or what did it.' He thought irritably and sighed. Midoriko looked over at him and frowned.

His eyes looked far away and Midoriko recognized the look as depression. Slightly worried about the man, Midoriko stood and made her way to his side. She sat down beside him and tried to catch his eyes. Once he glanced over to her, she smiled softly and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry. Everything...will turn out ok...I hope." She whispered and Davis smiled lopsidedly. "I know." He said with a double meaning as he placed his own hand on hers. Subaki and Damien had stopped their little charade as they witnessed the touching display. Both eyes narrowed as both shot to their feet to interfere.

"Midoriko-sama!"

"'Riko!"

Both shouted the girls name and leapt over to where she was sitting. Davis scowled at them and Midoriko looked at them with confusion. 'What is their problem? I can't comfort anyone? They're practically hanging over each other and yet I can't lend a comforting hand to another person?' Midoriko ranted into her head as she tried to calm down.

Damien had situated himself between Davis and Midoriko and Subaki was trying to sit on his lap. Damien growled in annoyance as he tried to shove the woman off of him. Davis watched this with a smirk as a small plan formed in his head. 'It appears that the lady miko's sister is enamored of Damien. Now to get the two of them together, which leaves me with Midoriko.'

Damien saw the look in his brothers eyes and tried to keep his own from narrowing. The bastard was planning something...

Subaki realized that Damien had stopped struggling and was now staring at the captain. 'Well, ex-captain. He doesn't have a ship anymore and all his servants are dead...how sad.' She preened in her head as she snuggled closer to the stiff man behind her. Midoriko watched her sister with thinly veiled disgust and astonishment. 'I never realized she was so...'

'_**Loose? Bitchy? Free with her attentions? Whore-ish?'**_

'Yes...' Midoriko thought with a sad sigh and it seemed her self-conscious was surprised at her easy agreement.

'_**So you've finally come around, eh?' **_

'I guess I can no longer lie to myself anymore...her aura is slowly turning a dark red...some parts of it are already black and purple.'

'_**Glad you noticed. Now, how are we gonna get her sticky hands off of our man?'**_

'He is not ours. If he...wants...her, then I will step aside.'

'_**Are you kidding! Look at the way he's trying to get the wench off of him!'**_

'He probably feels embarrassed with public displays of affection.'

'_**Keep telling yourself that and you'll lose him before you even try.'**_

Midoriko felt a strange determination fill her being and almost smiled in the way it lit her whole body up with happiness. She glanced over at Subaki and reached over, pulling her shocked sister off of the relieved man.

"Behave yourself, Subaki." She whispered and Subaki stared at her in shock.

Never had Midoriko ever done anything like this. 'She actually pulled me off the guy and told me to behave!'

'_**See? It's already begun! It's all because of the man we are both attracted to.'**_

Subaki frowned and examined her sister. Midoriko glanced at Damien and then quickly looked away, fighting a blush at the appreciative glance he had sent back. Subaki narrowed her eyes and stifled a growl. 'She's moving in on him!' She asked herself incredulously and was surprised when she got an answer. But, the voice that answered was not her own.

'_Of course she is moving in on the man. She is going to take him away from you ...you wouldn't like that...would you?'_

The voice was low and melodious, holding a deeper seductive tone that made her shiver, despite the warmth from the fire. Subaki contemplated these words for a while then shook her head in a negative. 'No, but I do not think she will do anything about it. She wouldn't do that once she knew I liked him. And by now I'm sure she knows...'

'_Are you positive of this?'_

Subaki didn't answer the voice as she stared at her sister in slight question. 'You wouldn't do that...would you, 'Riko?'

:On the Island in the present:

Sesshoumaru stared at the wind witch floating above him as she entered the barrier erected around the place where Naraku was probably hidden. 'The coward!' He mentally scowled while on the outside he was just as stoic as ever. He glanced up at the sky and realized it was near dusk. Memorizing where he was, he sped off to where they had placed Kagome for safe keeping. His heart nearly leapt into his throat at the thought of the human girl dying in the cave.

'She will be fine.' He kept telling himself as he zipped through the trees as fast as he could go, silently marking where everything was.

:With Inuyasha and Kouga:

Inuyasha let out a grunt of pain as he slid down the trunk he had previously slammed into. Blood ran down the side of his face where he had been clonked already. Beside him Kouga also groaned as he too tried to stand from the hole shaped like himself. Before them floated Michael, staring at them in all seriousness. He himself had not escaped the fight without wounds. One of his black wings lay a little limp from an attack by Kouga and his once smirking face was bleed profusely from the claw marks done by Inuyasha himself.

Letting out a slight growl, Kouga leapt at the winged youkai the same time Inuyasha did. All three of them had red tinting the corners of their eyes. Before anyone could land another hit, a silver streak knocked the winged youkai back. Inuyasha and Kouga blinked in confusion as Sesshoumaru stood before them staring down at Michael.

Michael looked up at the Taiyoukai and blinked. 'Where's Gabe? I know he didn't kill him, I can still feel he is alive and well, if somewhat frustrated... why isn't he with the Taiyoukai!' Michael slowly stood and cocked an eyebrow. "Where is you brother?" Sesshoumaru asked as he tried to sense if the other youkai was hiding. Michael's eyebrow shot up even further and his mouth went down in a frown.

"He...he wasn't with you?" Michael asked slowly and watched as the Taiyoukai lifted his own eyebrow. "No." He said simply and al four youkai thought over this strange occurrence. Inuyasha let out a slight snicker and looked over at Michael.

"So, you lost you brother?" He asked with a slight laugh, but stopped when he realized that no one else shared his amusement. Sesshoumaru turned his steely gaze to Inuyasha and frowned. "If he is lost, Inuyasha, then that means he could be doing anything..."

"Do you know where he'd go?" Kouga asked and felt like flinching at the slightly civil tone he held with the youkai they had been ready to kill just minutes before. Michael thought for a moment and then felt his face pale. Gabriel had been acting strange since he had first laid eyes on the dying human girl...what if...

"Kagome." Sesshoumaru, Kouga and Inuyasha said at the same time while Michael muttered out "The Girl." All four youkai looked to each other and then shot off in the direction of the waterfall. Michael followed closely behind, not knowing where the girl was.

:With Gabriel:

Gabriel let out a frustrated sigh and tried not to show his annoyance. The girls scent was very faint here, but it wasn't anywhere else. He was currently in a clearing just beside the waterfall and was trying to understand where they could have taken her. His eyes were slightly red in his rage and frustration and his white wings were apparent and ruffled. His platinum blonde hair swung around wildly as he paced, finally deciding to head toward the pond with the waterfall.

He sat down on the bank of the pond and breathed in deep, trying to calm his raging emotions. Not to mention his inner beast, that was trying to break free to search for the woman he was attracted to. As he took in another deep breath a familiar scent reached his nose. It was the small male kitsune pup's scent. It was on the bank of this pond and extremely close.

'Where the pup is, the girl is sure to be.' He thought to himself as he stood and searched the small pond. After finding no other leads he sat down to glare at the beautiful water cascading over the rocks. As he stared at it, his thoughts clicked and his face split into a grin. 'Clever little brats.' He thought to himself as he stood and approached the waterfall in a predator sort of way.

Just as he was reaching the falling water, a body connected with his side, throwing both into the shallow water of the pond. Silver hair swirled around under the surface as Sesshoumaru, Kouga and Michael watched on in indifference and anger. Inuyasha came to the surface first and sucked in as much air as he could. Beside him, Gabriel did the same.

Michael hauled Gabriel out of the water as he floated above him. He shook him hard and glared into his brothers cold black eyes. "What the hell are you doing?" He shouted as the other three youkai watched with shocked and confused faces.

Gabriel wrenched himself free and glared back. Michael waited impatiently for a response, but, after not getting one, he began his rant again. "We were told to hunt down the stupid youkai over there, not some damn dying human wench!" Gabriel looked away from his twin and smirked. he didn't answer as his eyes strayed over to the waterfall.

"So she is in there..." He whispered and turned a steely look to Michael. The dark youkai stiffened as he realized his brother's gaze was turning red. It was, after all, close to mating season...and the girl was the only grown female on the island...that they knew of anyway. This same thought ran through all of their minds as they narrowed their eyes on the fidgeting Gabriel.

Sesshoumaru growled lowly and went to stand in front of the waterfall, his bare chest and dress pants getting wet as the mist from the water washed over him. Kouga went to stand by his side and Inuyasha stood next to Kouga. They made it clear to the two brothers...they were willing to kill any who dared o get any closer, and Gabriel was daring.

:With Kagome and Midoriko:

Kagome listened as Midoriko trailed off and felt her heart ache for the older miko. She had fallen in love with the man her sister was also falling for and, in that respect, was going to let the younger bitch have him! 'It's so tragic!' She thought as she watched the meadow shift slightly to early summer.

"I'm afraid we must stop the story there my dear...you must wake up." Midoriko said as she stood up. Kagome frowned and shot to her feet as well.

"What? Why?" She demanded as she allowed her disappointment to show.

Midoriko smiled and shook her head. "Trouble is brewing my dear, and you must awaken to stop a needless battle from breaking out." Kagome sighed and nodded her head. She then looked up in an almost pleading manner. "Will...will I be able to hear the rest later?" She asked in a nervous like manner.

Midoriko smiled again at the young woman and nodded. "I will visit you when you next go to sleep. There I will tell you the conclusion to the story. And about the responsibility you will have to uptake in order to ensure the world order."

Kagome sighed and nodded her head. Even as she felt her eyes close, she knew she had left the meadow with Midoriko and was now close to waking up. Terrified squeaks and the drone of male voices in the background filled her sensitive ears. It all sounded kind of echo-y. 'Where am I? What happened?' She asked herself disoriented as she opened her eyes and looked around the darkened cave she was in.

Her eyes first lit upon the translucent form of the ghost that fit the description of the two brothers Damien and Davis. He smiled slightly then disappeared. 'Which one was that?' She thought dazedly as she turned her head to see Rin and Shippo huddling by the entrance of the cave, apparently watching something outside the waterfall.

Dark shapes were all she could see, passed the white cascade and she gave up trying to pick out something she recognized. She instead focused on standing up and nearly cried out in joy as she did so. She stiffly walked over to where Rin and Shippo were, neatly side stepping the poison puddle and gaining her balance as she went.

As she placed a hand on both of the children's shoulders she felt the tale-tell feel of youki come off of them. 'They're youkai.' She thought in amazement as they both turned and let out quiet yips of joy when they realized she was awake. Hugging them back, Kagome looked down at them sternly and whispered into their ears. "You've all got a lot of explaining to do."

Rin and Shippo looked up to her with tears in their eyes and nodded as she pushed them back behind her. She told them to keep quiet as she slid out on the ledge from the side of the waterfall and gasped in amazement at the beautiful people before her. 'Kouga? Inuyasha? Sesshoumaru? They...they're youkai...who are the other two!' Kagome slowly slid herself down the side of the waterfall, still half hidden from view and went to stand on the shore. Now on solid ground with the setting sun behind her, Kagome placed her hands on her hips and opened her mouth for the second time in a day.

"What the hell is going on!" She demanded as she watched all of their cat-like eyes shoot over to where she stood. A small prickle of fear slid up her spine but was crushed by her growing temper.

:POV Change:

Sesshoumaru heard her bell-like voice and all quickly turned to look at her. Her mouth was moving, but Sesshoumaru, nor any of the others could hear what she was saying. Her sapphire eyes flashed with an inner fire and her hair glinted in the fading sunlight. It haloed her body, outlining her lean legs and tiny waist, showing off her bust and hips to perfection.

Sesshoumaru felt his body react and tried to squash the feelings down. He glanced around to see the others equally entranced. Trying to keep a growl from rising in his chest, he breathed in just as the wind shifted and carried her scent toward them. It immediately caused his hormones to go into overdrive and he felt his eyes redden.

Meanwhile, the full moon began to climb into the sky announcing to all of what had come. Mating season had finally arrived. And there, on that remote little island, were five horny youkai staring at the only grown female within a thousand mile radius. (heh... I kinda dissed Kagura there...) Let the "courting" begin...

:XD:

KC: Holy Moly! That was a long-ass chapter! I had better get some reviews for this one or you won't get the rest!

PLEASE REVIEW!


	8. The Memory

A Tempting Fate

Chapter 8: The Memory

By Kaguya's Chaos

Miroku and Sango stood on the dock of the bay area, silently observing the small crew they had hired to man the boat they were taking to find their beloved sister. It was rather huge...more like a Yacht then an actual boat. Beside Miroku and Sango stood a very proud Ayame, beaming at all the hard work she had done and how it was all going to pay off in the end. 'I wonder what kind of person this Miss Higurashi is to have so many people intent on finding her...' She thought absently as she looked over at the giddy couple beside her.

Myoga and Jaken were arguing, as usual, as they made their way down the docks to their own "little" boat. Miroku and Sango had offered that they go together, but Jaken had said he would rather float in a bathtub to Sesshoumaru-sama then go with them. Myoga had quickly rammed the toads head into the building beside them and said he would also have to disagree.

For one, they didn't know how long it would take to reach the island and food would be a major factor. Second, there wasn't enough room for them and Jaken's overly large ego. Third, they had no idea what state the survivors might be in and, with both boats going, it insured that there would be more first aid and supplies at the ready.

Miroku and Sango turned to wave at Myoga, as the two old youkai boarded, and went to board themselves. They watched with slight amusement as two wolf youkai also trudged along after the elder youkai, carrying what looked to be a weeks worth of luggage. 'Those poor boys.' Sango thought sparingly as she walked the deck of the boat and listened as the captain of their vessel hollered out that they were ready to leave.

No one seemed to notice a third "boat" at the end of the pier also being readied for launch. Hojo, Kikyou and Onigumo stood on the deck of their own private ship and watched as the Shikon Inc ship left the harbor, quickly followed by the Taisho Industries ship and then their own. They followed at a more sedate pace, trying to be stealthy. It wouldn't last long, the three knew, but just enough to where the two they were following wouldn't have time to loose them.

Hojo smirked at his own cleverness and grabbed a hold of Kikyou. "What say you and me go and celebrate?" He asked as he turned his gaze to the woman next to him. Kikyou smirked and followed the man down into the cabin under the deck. Onigumo scowled at their backs, more then a little angry at not getting invited. 'Ah well, there are a few days ahead of us...I'm sure something of interest will happen.' He thought darkly and settled into a chair watching the full moon rise.

'Ah...the sea breeze at night sure is relaxing...what with the full moon...!' Onigumo sat up straight as he realized what exactly that full moon meant, especially at this time of the year. 'Oh shit! It's mating season! And we're heading off onto a deserted island full of hormone induced youkai!' His mind whirled at what that obviously meant and slowly relaxed. 'Ain't no way in hell I'm getting off this boat! Masaru is gonna have one tough time with getting his woman back. Three possessive youkai and one woman...too bad I'm gonna miss the beginning of the show!'

He reclined in his chair as he thought about what the young woman would possibly be going through. Perverted thoughts chased around the image of the business woman he had once seen in a magazine. 'Heh...poor girl.'

:lets jump ships...shall we:

Miroku watched from behind the captain as he revved the engine and put it in full. They had enough gas and power to make it to Africa and back, if that's what it took. Beside the captains small table, pinned to the corkboard, was the map the lab tech had given them, showing the approximate location of the island the survivors had crashed on. But it was rather surprising that no islands were charted there.

'How strange.' Miroku thought as he stared at the map in puzzlement. 'I have this strange urge not to go there, as if something is telling me that nothing is there...' He scrunched his eyebrows and crossed his arms over his chest. 'Could it be a concealing spell? Made to make people not want to approach the island? If so, that is indeed ancient and powerful magic...could something dangerous be there? Is Kagome in more danger then we thought?' This last thought brought up more questions. 'Kagome's plane was attacked by a youkai...could this all have been planned?'

Miroku was knocked out of his inner musings when Sango came up behind him and wrapped her arms around his chest. She placed her head on his back and sighed, listening to her husband's heartbeat. "We'll find her soon, Miroku. I know we will." Sango stated forcefully as she tried to keep the guilt and the worry out of her voice.

Miroku turned around and grabbed her hand. Without saying a word, the two went out onto the deck behind the captain's cabin and settled into a chair. Sango settled into Miroku's lap and both stared up at the full moon, deep in thought.

"It's not your fault, you know." Miroku whispered and Sango let out a shaky sigh. "You just wanted your best friend to go out and have a nice, relaxing vacation. You had no idea that this would happen."

"But, Miroku! I knew something bad would happen! I just wanted so much for her to go out and have a good time, doing stuff that didn't include the office or paperwork. I wanted her to relax on a beach and have a love-affair with some native named Hernando!" Miroku's eyebrow went up at this and a perverted gleam entered his eye. "I wanted her to come back without that pained grin she always has now. I never wanted for her to fall out of the sky and possibly wind up hurt! Or trapped on a remote island with YOUKAI during MATING SEASON!"

Sango's voice got steadily louder and more hysterical as she ranted on. Miroku let her go, knowing that she needed to get these emotions out, and after word he would calm her down. "Is it too much to ask that Kagome just relax and enjoy life! She's in her early twenties for crying out loud! And look at what she's already been through! Her mother died when she was twelve! She's had to live with YOU for six years!" At this Miroku scowled and pushed her away slightly. Sango continued, oblivious to his reactions "She works at her office more then any sane person alive! She was jilted at the alter by the love of her life! Now she's stranded on an island and all because I wanted her to go and have a nice time!"

At the end of her tirade, she sagged against Miroku with defeat and stared down at the wooden planks before her. Miroku sighed and tugged the woman back against his chest. "Sango, you are not to blame for this. What ever caused the crash...or rather who ever caused the crash, is the one responsible for all this. Besides, I'm pretty sure Kagome was grateful to know that you cared enough to send her on this trip to relax."

"Yeah, but she's all alone!" Sango sobbed out and Miroku sighed again.

"I'm positive that the Taisho brothers and the strange Wolf guy will protect Kagome from anything that might happen." Miroku stated trying to calm her down. Sango shifted and looked up at the hentai as if he were insane.

"Miroku...isn't it this mating season time, thing!" She whispered hoarsely and Miroku flinched. "Oh...yeah...right." He stumbled over his words as Sango let out a dangerous growl.

"MIROKU!"

:with poor Hakkaku and Ginta:

Ginta groaned and leaned against the bag he had been carrying around since they had gotten on the boat. Hakkaku sagged beside him huffing and puffing over the work he himself had been subjected to. "Who knew working for Myojin would be so hard?" He growled out as he tried to stand up straight.

Ginta looked at his brother and sighed as well. "Let's not think of that right now. Remember that we are on our way to where Kouga is." He said as he ordered his tired limbs to support his weight as he stood. Hakkaku sighed and seemed to deflate right before his eyes. "Lets just rest a bit. Please, Ginta?" He whimpered as he slid down the wall of the storage room and stretched his feet out in front of him.

Nodding in assent, Ginta slid to the floor as well and soon both were off in their own little dream lands, thinking about how things used to be before this whole crash thing happened. Ginta frowned as he remembered fighting with Kouga over taking the case that would send him to Hawaii for a while. He hadn't felt right about it, and now he knew why.

:With Myoga and Jaken:

Jaken huffed as he sat his squat form down on the little chair inside the cabin he was sharing with that damnable Myojin. His large yellow eyes looked even more eerie now that he had taken off his concealing spell. His large mouth was shaped like a beak, making him look more like a frog then anything else.

Myoga looked over at the toad and rolled his eyes. He kept his concealing spell on, rather preferring the height added to him then the short little speck he actually was. Both youkai reclined in their furnished surroundings and thought over the uneasy feeling they had had when Sesshoumaru-sama had announced that he and his brother were going to Hawaii due to a business transaction that they needed to oversee.

Sesshoumaru had been so adamant about going that neither of the underlings had said anything. Now they both regretted not warning the lord that this trip felt like a bad idea to them. 'Maybe if we had said something, they wouldn't have gone and had not been in that crash.' Jaken snorted at that thought and shook his head.

"Sesshoumaru-sama would have gone anyway." He said out loud and without asking what the toad meant, Myoga agreed.

:Onto the island:

Kagome stood there staring at the males before her, trying to keep her thoughts innocent. She took in details about her companions looks now that they were not covered by glamour spells. The first one to catch her attention was Sesshoumaru, naturally.

And whooo boy was he HOTT! His long silver hair had an unnatural sheen to it that sucked in the light from around it and shown with its own brilliance. His finely sculpted face had tattooed markings over the cheeks and on his forehead. The maroon stripes and purple-like crescent moon screamed out at her erotically and caused her heart to pick up speed. 'Who knew that face markings would be a turn on for me...' She thought and her eyes were distracted by a movement just by the Taiyoukai's shoulder. A long silver tail ,or that's what she thought it was, was draped over his shoulder, begging to be stroked and Kagome felt her hands twitch at the thought of running her hands through the fine hair.

Tearing her eyes away from the godly sight, Kagome's eyes rested on Kouga's own taut form. He didn't have the markings that Sesshoumaru did, but his sheer aura screamed out animalistic traits. His ice-like eyes were intense and focused solely on her, causing tremors of excitement to race up her spine.

Kagome moved her eyes over to Inuyasha and tried to keep her hands at her sides and not reaching out to tweak the doggy ears atop his head. His silver hair wasn't as long as his brothers, but it was just as shiny, belying his youkai blood. Kagome thought for a second that there were purple-ish shadows on his cheeks, but shook her head and thought it was merely due to the moon light.

Her eyes then turned to examine the two unknown youkai and her heart picked up speed once again. They rivaled Sesshoumaru in beauty, especially the silver haired one. The darker haired youkai had a more rugged beauty, much like Inuyasha and Kouga. The silver haired youkai had the most gorgeous wings she had ever seen, spread out behind him, giving the illusion of a guardian angel, ready to fight. The darker haired one had beautiful wings as well, although one of them looked like it had been bent the wrong way at some point.

'Oh...Lord...' Kagome thought, gulping down the sudden arousal that was rising within her at the sight of the five youkai. 'Stop it, Kagome! You're gonna cause a whole world of trouble with these thoughts! Hang on to your anger!' She thought desperately as she licked her lips nervously. 'Maybe jumping out hadn't been the best of ideas...'

Kagome's thoughts drifted off as she backed up and put her hands up. "Uh...you know what? Never mind! Ignore me!" She said as she put a hand behind her head and grinned, her other hand still nervously waving in front of her. She cracked open an eye and almost "eep"-ed at the red eyed stares she was receiving. 'Oh man!' She shrieked mentally and swiftly turned around. Without a thought to how stupid this was going to be, she instantly ran at top speed away from the now pursuing men, or rather youkai, behind her.

Kagome felt herself pick up speed at the thought of one of the males behind her either killing her and then eating her, or eating her while she still lived, or maybe they wouldn't eat her...just hurt her really badly and then laugh at her. The insanely stupid image of Sesshoumaru standing over her with one foot on her back and his hands on his hips, looking at nothing with a triumphant grin plastered over his face, passed over her minds eye and Kagome almost tripped over a root, trying not to laugh.

She let out a slight scream when something smashed into her, only to bounce away from her. Instead of falling, as her pursuers hoped, Kagome stumbled a bit and picked up more speed. 'CRAP!' She mentally shouted and felt her legs tense up in protest at her speed. 'Shut up legs and keep running!' She mentally commanded as she tried to find some place to hide or something to defend herself with.

'Where are bows and arrows when you needed them!' She asked herself and didn't ponder over the fact that she had asked for a BOW and some ARROWS when she had never even held one in her life.

Behind her, all five youkai were watching her run with amusement and further arousal, while trying to take out their competition at the same time. Kouga had an elbow in Gabriel's face and Gabriel had a wing in front of Inuyasha. Michael had an arm wrapped around Inuyasha's neck and one of his feet constantly in front of Sesshoumaru. Sesshoumaru had his tail unraveled and sneaking up on the bunch that consisted of Gabriel, Kouga and Inuyasha.

With absolutely no warning, the three unknowing victims were swept backward and smashed into various foliage. Michael briefly glanced behind him, this was a big mistake on his part. A random branch appeared out of nowhere and, as the cliché goes, just as he turned around, he smacked right into it.

Unfortunately for our favorite Taiyoukai, as he came crashing down, Michael's hand was firmly planted into the side of Sesshoumaru's pants. In a morbidly slow motion, Michael felt himself fall and in the process brought a certain article of clothing with him. Sesshoumaru glanced down in horror as he heard a faint ripping noise and realized that the front of his pants was tearing.

Needless to say, the pants were torn down, leaving Sesshoumaru in his black, silk boxers. Not only was he half nude, well, more so now, but his clothes had "conveniently" pooled and stuck around his ankles. Leaving our poor Taiyoukai crashed on the jungle floor, with his pants down. Slightly behind him, still clutching the inu-youkai's pants, lay a face-planted Michael. Both were knocked into a daze-like sleep.

Kagome heard the crashes behind her but kept going, not slowing down for anything. 'Hide, hide, hide, hide, hide.' Repeated in her mind, over and over again. Her sapphire eyes flashed around the immediate area, searching, in case you didn't know, for a place to hide. The hairs on the back of her neck slowly fell and she knew that she had somehow lost her pursuers. 'What ever works...'

'_**Take a left.' **_

Kagome nearly stopped at the strange voice in her head. 'What the...'

'_**No time to explain, little miko. You must hurry. If they catch you now, it would be disastrous. No time for explanations!'**_

Without thinking twice, Kagome followed the voices instruction, turning left and then a right. Leaping over various things in her set path, Kagome kept her eyes out for anything spectacular.

'_**Quickly! Behind the bush with the orange flowers!' **_

Kagome turned and looked for the orange flowers. As she spotted them, she noticed it was next to a cliff. 'What the hell! You trying to get me to fall to my death!' She mentally screamed at the voice, even as she approached the bush rapidly.

'_**Trust me, as you trust Midoriko.' **_

Kagome let out a sigh and did as the voice asked. 'I'll just close my eyes as I fall.' She thought self-pityingly and ran around the bush. As she did so, she realized a few key things. One: Her eyes would not shut, no matter how she willed them too. Two: The cliff didn't just drop out of sight, although it looked like it did. Three: There was a small ledge that she was running down instead. Four: There was a cave in front of her. And Five: There was a horrendous stench coming off of those deceptive weeds trying to pass off as orange flowers.

Sliding to stop once she reached the cave, Kagome took in her surroundings with an air of awe. She was in a cave that was on the cliff-side of the island, overlooking an ominously dark sea. The full moon was now high in the sky and Kagome allowed her eyes to dilate to take in as much light as she could.

She turned around to stare into the cave she had unwillingly entered. It was deep. She knew this due to the fact that the moon's light could not reach the back of the cave. Taking a deep breath, Kagome crossed her arms as the wind picked up around her scantily clad figure. ((remember folks, she's in cut off shorts and a tie-in-the-front shirt.)) Gathering up her courage, she slowly started her "adventurous trek" into the depths of the cave. 'Adventurous...ha! I've had all the adventure for a life time!'

Kagome placed a hand on the wall of the cave and followed its curves into the dark. As the light from the moon faded from her vision and the dark closed in, Kagome began to realize the walls farther in were glowing of their own accord. Her eyes widened slightly as she realized there were small crystals in the walls of the cave that were emitting their own light.

She glanced behind her to see a small pinprick of light and realized she had been steadily turning a slight corner and half of the mouth of the cave was already gone from her view. She faced the back of the cave again and continued. Her curiosity and excitement grew as she watched as the glowing crystals grew bigger and more in abundance. She turned a sharp corner, thinking of the weird crystals, her hand no longer on the wall of the cave. Just as she came around the corner, her breath was stolen from her as she stared at the gorgeous sight before her.

"Oh Kami..." She breathed out as she walked toward the blue shimmering water in front of her. The small cavern in which she now stood, looked like someone's private underground swimming pool. The water seemed to be lit by large blue and pink crystals from the bottom, refracting the light and causing strange patterns to dance over the walls of the chamber. It was indeed a lovely sight.

'It would be even more perfect if it were a heated, fresh-water spring!' Kagome thought as she approached the water and knelt down at the edge. Her hand hovered over the surface for a second, her hesitation stilling her motion. With a determined look, she dipped her hand in and let out a squeal of delight.

The water was not as hot as the hot-springs she loved to sit in, but it was a pleasant, lukewarm temperature. She brought her wet finger to her mouth and tasted the water with trepidation. It was fresh water! She grinned in relief and felt the aches in her body at that moment. Her legs failed her and her arms felt like they were going to fall off.

'I am so going to relax in this water.' She thought, tiredly, and slipped her clothes off, not thinking of how she was going to dry herself or if the guys were going to find her while she bathed. The only thought on her mind was the calm warm water before her and the possibility that her aches would go away. 'I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.' She decided and slid into the relaxing water.

Without meaning too, Kagome's eyes slid shut and the poor girl slipped into a deep sleep, her arms over the side of the deep pool and her head resting on her arms.

:Inside Kagome's "dream":

Kagome once again found herself sitting in a luscious meadow. Above her were perfect blue skies, without a cloud in sight. Surrounding the meadow were tall dark green trees, speaking of a deeper, darker, magic farther in the woods. Letting out a sigh, Kagome fell back and lay staring up at the sky, waiting for the miko to appear.

She did not wait long. For someone came alright, but this person was definitely not Midoriko.

"M-mother!" Kagome gasped as she sat upright and faced the slight figure that was her mother. The woman's soft brown eyes twinkled for a moment before she opened her mouth to greet her only daughter and surviving child.

"Hello, Kagome."

Kagome rushed to her feet and straight into the woman who had been there for half of her life. "Mama!" Kagome shrieked out, not caring how childish she sounded or that she was crying as she clung to the semi-real form of her long dead mother. "But, how! Why!" She asked as she tried to stifle the sobs wracking her small form.

Mrs. H. (as I will call her.) looked down on her daughter's kneeling figure and ran her fingers through her raven hair. "I was granted a small boon. I have come to refresh your memory." She whispered knowing the next few minutes would hurt, but they needed to be done.

Kagome looked up, her eyes still watering and gave her mother a confused look. "R-remember what?" She asked a little afraid of what the answer would be. Mrs. H. smiled and sat down beside her daughter, still cradling her head. She placed Kagome's head in her lap and looked out over the meadow, trying not to show much emotion.

"Your brother's death."

:XD:

KC: Wouldn't you just be PISSED if I ended it there?

:sigh: I'm too nice, so I won't.

:XD:

Kouga growled as he tried to shift. A blinding pain in his right temple screamed that movement would not be a very good idea. He opened his eyes and they quickly adjusted to the dark setting he was currently in. His mouth formed a frown as he tried to decide just where exactly he WAS. All around him looked to be giant birds nests or something. He was in the tree tops, or close to it...whatever, the point was he was not on the ground.

'What happened? Where am I?' He asked as he slowly sat up. A shifty noise drew his attention to behind him and he turned his head, blinking in slight horror at the sight. A rather large black monkey was staring at him intently, it's hands slowly reaching for him. Kouga's mouth dropped open in terror and as he went to stand, large black blobs dropped from the sky.

Twenty or so monkeys rose from their crouches and stared at him with a strange gleam in their eyes. Kouga backed up a few steps and let out a scream. "NOT AGAIN!" And another sort of "courtship" began.

:XP:

Inuyasha rolled over and he smacked his lips together, trying to get rid of the strange grainy taste in his mouth. His eyes slowly lifted and he stared at what was in front of him in sleepy disinterest until he registered what it was that he was staring at. His head whipped up and his body scooted as far away from the thing as possible.

His back hit the bark of a tree and his hand sunk into a puddle of goo by his side. Inuyasha shrieked and stood up abruptly. All around him were small ponds of, yep, you guessed it! Quicksand.

'Ohshitohshitohshitohshit!' He thought as he whirled around, trying to find a safe spot to cross. A slight gurgling/sucking sound reached his ears and Inuyasha shrieked again, thinking he was going to sink into the stuff once more. He calmed down a bit when he realized he had not moved an inch.

His panicked amber eyes glanced around him as slight confused/curiosity covered his top layer of emotions. He saw a flash of movement from his right side and turned to it. His face went from panic to amused as he took in the sight of the winged youkai, Gabriel, neck deep in the stuff that shouldn't have been there in the first place.

"Well, well, well. What HAVE we here?" He asked, mockingly, as he slowly made his way to the growling Gabriel.

"Help me out of here, half-breed!" Gabriel demanded as he tried to keep his hands and head above the killer trap. Inuyasha smirked and knelt down to the youkai's level.

"Why the hell should I?" He asked and flashed his teeth. Gabriel stared at the inu-hanyou for a while before an idea struck him. He smirked as well and Inuyasha felt slight trepidation creep up his spine. 'Walk away, dumb-ass!' His mind shouted, but as all ego's go, his told him to watch the youkai sink.

"If you don't get me out of here, I'll tell your brother-"

"Half-brother!" Inuyasha interrupted, snarling.

"Half-brother, just what you were doing while trying to find Naraku." Gabriel finished and Inuyasha froze. His mind didn't even think of the fact that if the youkai was left he would sink and couldn't tell anyway. No, he didn't even think of that fact.

So, with a scowl, the hanyou reached in and easily pulled the gunk-covered youkai out of the ooze. Gabriel scowled down at the mess on his person and his drooping wings, also saturated in the junk. Inuyasha also stared down at his own clothes and grimaced. The icky stuff was also all over him, and he had a sinking feeling that the gritty stuff in his mouth was the same as that on his clothes.

"Come on, the small stream is over this way." Inuyasha sighed as he lead the way to the water that would clean him off. Just as he and Gabriel had reached the water, they both remembered what exactly it was they were doing before they had woken up in the marsh.

"That bastard cheated!" Both said out loud, thinking of a certain Taiyoukai.

Cleaning as fast as they could, they began their hunt for the female they both wanted and the youkai that had taken them off the scent.

:FGS:

Michael groaned as he sat up and let go of the cloth he had held with a death-grip. He rubbed the side of his face and looked down. His eyes widened and he shot to his feet, disgusted to see the ass of the Taiyoukai staring back at him. Albeit a clothed ass, but still pointed directly at him. He also noticed the cloth he had been gripping was the pants of the Taiyoukai. 'What the fuck happened!' He screamed in his head as he watched the inu raise himself up, just as groggily.

Sesshoumaru felt a slight breeze on his legs and realized that that wasn't supposed to happen. He swiftly looked down and his jaw dropped. 'Why the hell are my pants...' His thought trailed off as he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He looked over into the horrified eyes of the winged youkai and jumped up, only to fall back down.

"What the fuck happened!" Both shouted at the same time and glared at the other. Michael stood up and scowled at Sesshoumaru.

"Why don't you tell me, Sesshoumaru! YOU are the one with your pants down!"

Sesshoumaru jerked his pants back into place and stood up just as swiftly. "YOU pulled them down when you fell, baka!" He snarled back and Michael's self-righteous posture deflated as the memory came back to him.

"Oh." He said simply and Sesshoumaru ignored him. He held his pants together with one hand as he raised his nose in the air, searching for a certain scent. It was very faint, but Sesshoumaru caught Kagome's distinct scent. Without a word to the other youkai, Sesshoumaru shot off in the direction the woman had taken.

Michael blinked as he realized the youkai had departed and quickly shot after him. As he ran he remembered why he had been running in the first place and he slowed down a bit. Now that his beast wasn't in control anymore, he realized he didn't really want the woman. He took a deep breath and his eyes turned red. 'The human's scent is very persuasive.' He concluded as he raced after the Taiyoukai with renewed strength.

:Lets go back to Kouga, shall we:

Kouga let out a desperate whimper as he crashed through underbrush and trees, without a care for what was in front of him. The only thing that consumed his attention and thoughts was the rampaging horde of insane monkeys behind him.

Kouga squeaked out in terror as he felt a hand ghost across his shirt. 'Why the fuck are these damn monkeys so fast anyway!' He thought in frustration as he crashed into a small clearing. His breath whooshed out in relief as he saw two familiar figures ahead, also running. Not as fast as him and his monkey lovers, though.

Inuyasha's ears twitched as he heard a peculiar sound nearing him from behind. He and Gabriel both glanced back and nearly tripped over the sight that was fast approaching. Inuyasha and Gabriel sped up, stark terror mirrored their faces as they took in the fact that a crying Kouga was about to pull up to them with a gaggle of crazy monkeys behind him.

Gabriel nearly moaned when Kouga suddenly popped up next to him and the hanyou. The monkeys hollering behind them. "Go the fuck away, Kouga!" Inuyasha shouted as he took a swipe at the wolf. Kouga dodged it and sped up even more. Both youkai sighed in relief, only to have their eyes widen in horror as a pair of monkeys jumped them, grabbing holds of their hair and arms.

Both youkai made a fatal error as they stopped and tried to detach the leech-like things. Of course, the monkeys chasing Kouga stopped and jumped the easier prey as well. Inuyasha finally got enough off of him to continue running. Gabriel however, had decided that he had had enough of land and jumped into the sky. He detached monkeys even as his wings pushed him further up into the sky. He then looked down to see Inuyasha and Kouga racing ahead of the monkey tribe and followed them from the safety of the skies.

:With Sesshoumaru and Michael:

Sesshoumaru stopped thirty feet from the cliff, losing Kagome's scent in the horrific stench that wafted up from somewhere. His nose burned and he backed up a few more feet. Beside him, Michael had a hand clamped over his nose. Both stood there for a while, not sure what to do now.

Sesshoumaru let his aura flare up and search for the girl, looking for any miko energies. He came up with nothing and growled. Finding this wench was proving to be a rather tedious challenge. Michael turned to Sesshoumaru, after his own search, and shook his head. "What now, big man?" He asked sarcastically and Sesshoumaru bared his fangs at the fool.

Before he could retort, however, a noise came to their ears, sounding suspiciously like a wail. Both slowly turned and watched with wide eyes as a panting Inuyasha and screaming Kouga came at them. Behind them a stampede of hollering monkeys followed closely. 'What did those morons do this time!' Both thought as they leapt into the air and watched as both mutts disappeared over the cliff with the monkeys following them still, into the dark depths of the sea.

Kouga screamed again as he hit the cold water and swallowed a mouth-full of the icky salty substance. Inuyasha held his breath as he plunged into the depths and looked up, barely seeing the black dots that appeared to be the monkeys. Both males swam farther away from the deeper water and tried to stay close to the cliffs. The undertow dragging at their legs.

Inuyasha smirked in triumph as he and Kouga watched the monkeys get sucked out into the ocean. 'Good riddance!' They both thought as they broke the surface and dragged themselves out of the water and onto the small ledge they had clung too.

Gabriel floated down to where Michael and Sesshoumaru stood, both looked to him, asking a silent question.

"No. Both still live." Gabriel answered shortly and Sesshoumaru and Michael sighed, dejectedly.

Inuyasha looked up the cliff to see his brothers face staring back at him with his usual stoic look. Kouga looked up as well and smirked at the Taiyoukai's expression. "Sorry to disappoint!" He shouted up as he stood on the ledge that wound up the side of the cliff. "But, we're both still alive." He finished and Sesshoumaru had to stifle the urge to snort.

Kouga continued to climb up the trail till he slipped and fell into the water, once again. "Yes, but it appears your mind is still dead." Sesshoumaru murmured as he turned around from the cliff, breathing through his mouth. The horrendous stench was most concentrated at the side of the cliff.

Inuyasha laughed at the wolf struggling to get back up the cliff and started to climb up himself. He made sure to watch where he was going, making sure he didn't wind up looking like Kouga. So, it was with total surprise when Inuyasha found himself staring at the entrance to a cave, with Kagome's scent practically surrounding it.

Kouga walked up to Inuyasha's side and his own mouth dropped open. "Kagome!" He shouted and drew the attentions of the youkai on top of the cliff. Inuyasha turned to the wolf and smacked him. 'What an idiot! If he hadn't of said anything, we could've gotten Kagome and Sesshoumaru would have never known!'

Gabriel, Michael and Sesshoumaru all shot back to the side of the cliff, ignoring the stench and stared down to see Inuyasha and Kouga walk into the side of the cliff. All three youkai leapt down the side and entered the mouth of the cave as well. Kagome's scent was indeed laced throughout the place, and clearly originated from deeper within the cave, signaling she was still inside.

All five males moved to step farther in, but bounced back in confusion. Kouga, already too close to the edge, again fell into the water, taking Inuyasha with him. Sesshoumaru's eyes turned crimson and he let out a menacing snarl. A barrier had been erected around the cave and was keeping him from the female he wanted.

Michael and Gabriel were also similarly enraged. All three began to attack the barrier with their youki and claws. It held firm.

After an hour, and after Inuyasha and Kouga had joined in the effort, all five had decided to wait until she came out. After all, she couldn't stay in there forever.

:back with the drama in Kagome's mind:

Kagome sat up sharply and stared into her mother's solemn eyes. 'My...brother?' She silently asked and Mrs. H. nodded her head. "You don't remember because you blocked it out." She said and Kagome backed up even more from her mother.

Mrs. H. sighed and put a hand over her face, again staring off into the distance. Her tearing eyes swiveled back to Kagome and she took a deep breath. "Kagome, you have to promise to listen to me." She said as he daughter stared at her warily. Kagome briefly nodded her head and sat back down, staring at her mother.

"He was born three days after your fifth birthday, and died a day before your eleventh birthday." Mrs. H. began and Kagome felt a tight coiling in her gut. She had a brief recollection of what this story was. Her heartbeat sped up and Mrs. H. continued.

"We were going shopping for Souta's birthday gifts, since his birthday was so close to your own, and we had already bought yours. We had left him at home with grandpa..."

:flashback:

Kagome smiled up at her mother as she clutched at her hand. Mrs. H. glanced down at her ten year old, soon to be eleven year old, with a gentle smile. Under both of their free arms were wrapped packages and bags of all sorts. Tomorrow it would be her birthday and in four days it would be her little brother's.

Kagome's bright blue eyes shimmered in excitement as she thought of how her brother would react to the soccer ball she had gotten him with her own money. Mrs. H grinned down at Kagome again and thought of all the preparations she would have to take care of tonight. What with cakes to bake, ice cream to see to, guests to accommodate...

Kagome let go of her mothers hand and raced up the shrine steps with the energy only a child could have. When she reached the top, she didn't notice the deadly silent surroundings or the lack of a childish "onee-chan!" screamed in her direction, which she usually got when she came home.

Mrs. H frowned as she reached the top herself and grabbed a hold of Kagome's hand. "Stay here for a moment, ok, sweetie?" Mrs. H softly whispered and Kagome looked up at her mother in confusion. She nodded her head and smiled again. 'Maybe mommy is planning a surprise for me!' She thought in excitement as she sat down on the bench by the steps.

Mrs. H looked back at her daughter, briefly, as she started her trek toward the silent house. She slid open the door and, immediately, the metallic scent of blood reached her nose. Mrs. H kept her mind free of thoughts of what this could mean and slowly walked into the hostile atmosphere that shrouded the house, like a cloak.

She reached the living room and glanced in. She did a double take and her heart, as well as her stomach, bottomed out. Blood, fresh and red, was smeared over the walls in splattered patterns. Grotesquely looking like a preschooler's rendition of art. Mrs. H felt a hot pain in her gut as she surveyed the mess with watering eyes.

Everything was ruined, stained a brick red. Mrs. H stepped into the room in something like a daze. She felt her foot connect with something that shouldn't have been there and she looked down, instantly regretting it. There, in a bloody mass was what used to be a human body. And not just any human's body, but grandpa's. The old man looked like he had been torn and turned inside out. His entrails were strung out around him in a small circle. His skull had been completely smashed to pieces and bits of his bone mixed with what could have passed for brains.

The old man's legs were completely gone, and his arms looked like they had been pulled at till they were almost torn off, but not quite. Mrs. H let out a horrified sob as she tried to control the urge to retch. She quickly backed out of the room, running into the wall behind her. As her back collided with the solid object, she brought out of her daze, slightly.

She looked to her left and saw a faint trail of blood leading up the stairs. Wondering slightly why she hadn't seen it there before she stared at it a minute. Then one thought crashed through her head. Her baby was upstairs, and that's where the blood trail had gone.

The feeling all mothers get when their children are in danger was a hundredfold as she leapt up the stairs, two at a time. She followed the trail to a closed door and a strange noise came to her ears. A sort of tearing slurping noise reached her brain and Mrs. H slammed open the door. The sight she saw would haunt and eventually kill her from the inside out. There, lying on the bright blue carpet of a obviously boy room, was a monster, eating away at her baby's remains. The monster was extremely large, at least 6' 9" with large blood reddened claws and ruby red eyes. Its skin was a bluish black, with spine-y spikes all along its back. It's bone structure looked to be arranged similar to what a were-wolf's would be.

The monster lifted its blood covered face as it swallowed another piece of flesh from the little five year olds chest. Its fangs were bared menacingly, but Mrs. H didn't see it. Her horrified eyes were focused on her child's broken body. His neck was twisted at an odd angle and his chest was torn open, ribs and all. His clothes had been torn from him, leaving him bare as the day he was born.

The monster hissed something unintelligible and leapt at the stock-still woman. Mrs. H barely registered the fact of teeth tearing into her neck, and a strange white hot burning sensation entering her blood system. It appeared as though the beast was poisonous as well. Mrs. H kept her eyes on her dead baby, her thoughts had all but stopped. Her eyes became blank and her body relaxed as she excepted her fate and that of her son's.

A small gasp caught both of their attention, and they looked over to see a terrified Kagome hyperventilating in the hall. Mrs. H felt her nerves scream in pain as she became aware of one thing. She still had one more baby to protect. The monster above the older woman snarled, baring, once again, bloodied fangs and lunged at the little girl.

Kagome let out a scream and threw her hands up in fear. As she did so, a bright blue light filled the room and blasted the monster back. The light died down and both mother and daughter watched as the beast stumbled and fell down on the small bed behind it. Its red eyes gleamed at Kagome and a scary smirk stretched its face.

"You have the Shikon no Tama." Was the last thing it said before it turned to dust, obviously dead.

:End Flashback:

Kagome sat staring at nothing as she finally remembered the horrible truth about her past. She had a little brother that had died before he had even started his life all because of something she had been born with. Her eyes watered and her heart gave a horrible lurch. She remembered that after the attack, they had had to deal with the police and investigators trying to find out what had caused the deaths of the family members. Mrs. H had said that they had gotten home only to see the killer burst passed them, slicing open Mrs. H's neck in the process, and escaping into the city.

After the inquisition was over, Mrs. H and Kagome had sold the shrine and moved out of the small town they lived in and to Tokyo, where Mrs. H's brother and his family lived. There, Kagome had gotten counseling and, during a rather deep session, had a blackout. After the blackout, she remembered nothing about her grandfather or her brother, her mind not able to cope with the truth.

Mrs. H's health deteriorated, due to the poison injected into her being. The doctors could find nothing wrong with her or how to help. So, feeling that her life was running out, she did everything she could to help her remaining child. She researched everyday on what she could find out about this "Shikon no Tama".

A year of search paid off and Mrs. H had found that her daughter had been born with a jewel in her side. She told the doctors to take it out and place the jewel in a special vault. It had been done, and on the day that Mrs. H passed away, she made her daughter swear to keep the cursed thing safe from all youkai.

Kagome stared at her mother before her and let out a small sob. "I forgot about Souta!" She exclaimed as she launched at her equally crying mother. Both consoled each other as they let the memories rest.

Midoriko stood at a distance, her eyes showing her sorrow at the pain the two women had gone through. She thought back on how Subaki had died and quickly shut that door. 'I'll think about it when I get there.' She told herself as she stepped forward and placed a hand on Mrs. Higurashi's shoulder, silently telling her, her time was up.

Kagome looked up into Midoriko's eyes and nodded her head. She looked over at her mother and smiled. "I miss you Mama. I hope you are happy where you are."

"Oh, I am dear. Souta said to tell you he loves you and that he hopes you mate with one of the silver haired boys." Mrs. H answered and Kagome flushed bright red, and started to stutter. "W-what!"

Midoriko chuckled and took her mothers place when Mrs. H completely disappeared, whispering her love to her daughter and chuckling at Kagome's shocked look. Kagome smiled after her mother's ghost and then turned her attention to Midoriko with excitement lacing her features. Midoriko grinned at the look as she realized that Kagome was waiting for the rest of the story.

"Do you remember where we last left off?" She asked and Kagome thought a moment on what she had last heard.

"You, Subaki, Davis and Damien were heading toward another part of the island. After the terrible massacre on the beach by the ship."

:Into the story we go.:

Midoriko woke up in a pair of arms, feeling very comfortable. She slowly cracked open her eyes to stare into a deep emerald green pair of eyes, belonging to none other then Damien. A slow, lazy smirk crossed Damien's face as he looked into Midoriko's confused and flustered expression.

"You were shivering during the night so I decided to warm you up. I must have fallen asleep with you in my arms." He drawled, his voice like hot chocolate on a cold day.

Midoriko flushed bright red, but smiled anyway. "Thank you." She whispered and Damien had to repress a moan at the husky sound added to her voice due to just waking up. He released her and stood up, trying not to show just how the woman effected him. Subaki, who had just woken up herself, had noticed however, and didn't like it one bit.

Subaki's eyes flashed and she slowly stretched her muscles, staring at Damien the whole time. Her thinly veiled lust reflected fully in her normally brown, now black, eyes. Damien avoided her as much as possible as he went to wake his still sleeping brother.

Davis opened his eyes and sat up before Damien could reach him and shot to his feet. His eyes were blood-shot and his face expressed his alert senses. Damien backed away from him slightly and frowned. The death of the sailors was affecting his brother more then he previously thought.

"Ah, good morning, Davis-san." Midoriko said as she walked over to where their campfire had been and relit it. Davis turned to the miko and smiled in return. "Good morning to you as well, Midoriko." He whispered out in a low voice and sat down again. Damien frowned at his brother once again and sat down next to the fire as well.

Subaki chose this time to cozy up to the young man she had a crush on. She walked over and sat on his side, throwing her arms around Damien. "Oh, Damien-san! I had the worst dream!" She said as she snuggled closer. Her eyes darkened to black once again as she glanced over to see Midoriko ignoring her advances on Damien.

'That's right. Look away, Midoriko. You have no backbone. This one is mine.' She thought maliciously and squeezed the man's arm again.

Damien sighed in annoyance and looked down at the woman he listened to only because he liked her sister. Davis smirked at his brother and watched in growing amusement as the hair-brained woman went on and on about being lost in the jungle. 'If she didn't draw Damien's attention away from Midoriko, I would leave her in the damn jungle.' He thought as he scooted over to where Midoriko sat.

"How was your night?" He asked, trying to get her attention away from his brother and her sister and towards him.

Midoriko looked over at Davis and smiled grimly. "Not as good as I would hope it to be. How about you, Davis-san?" Her eyebrows scrunched up and her pretty lips formed a slight frown. "you didn't have any nightmares...did you?"

Davis sat back and stared into the fire, contemplating the dreams he had had. They weren't really nightmares, just half formed images and plans in his head. The color red had been a very big part of it all too.

Midoriko saw the strange gleam in Davis' glazed eyes and knew he had had nightmares. 'Great job 'Riko! Remind him of all the people that had died why don't you!' She quickly waved a hand in front of the captain's face and breathed sigh of relief when he looked over at her in surprise. Davis smiled slightly and shook his head. "They weren't really nightmares." He said lamely and Midoriko decided to let it pass.

Damien, finally able to detach the annoying wench beside him, looked over to where Midoriko and Davis were smiling at each other. 'The hell?' He asked himself as he stood up and went to help Midoriko with the fire. He purposely walked between them and stole a glance at Midoriko's face.

Midoriko looked down and hid her blush. Damien frowned and looked over at his scowling brother. Both smirked at each other, issuing a silent challenge. They weren't backing out of this, and the tragedy from before wasn't going to deter them either.

Subaki watched the proceedings with a thoughtful frown. 'So they both like Midoriko.' She stated in her head as she observed the way both men acted around her sister. 'Damien having feelings for her is a minor set-back...but the captain's feelings for her could help...' She grinned as a plan came to mind.

'Now to get the captain and Midoriko alone together. Of course, the alone time with Damien would be appreciated...'

"Hey Midoriko?" Subaki slowly asked as she walked over to her older sister. "I'm really hungry. Could you go get some berries or something for me? I can't find any!" She said as she glanced over at Davis. Their eyes caught and they both instantly understood each other.

Davis came up behind Midoriko and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'll go with you. You, know. Keep you safe and all." He smiled down on the flustered miko and ushered her into the surrounding jungle. Damien shot to his feet as they both walked off. He made to follow them, but was pulled up short by a hand on his arm.

Subaki grabbed a hold of one muscular arm and nearly shuddered at the power she felt under her fingertips. 'Holy Hell...he sure does work out!' She briefly thought as she tugged the male back toward her. "Let them go, Damien. I'm sure they want alone time. Just like I want with you!" She purred out seductively and hugged the stiff sailor about his waist.

Damien stared down at the female clinging to him in horror. 'There is something wrong with this girl!' He thought as he began his struggles to be free. Subaki frowned as she hung on to the twisting form.

With a cry of triumph, Damien felt her grasp loosen and quickly pushed her off. "Look. I don't want anything to do with you! I don't like you! At all! So stay the hell away from me!" He bellowed at the stunned Subaki and quickly stalked off in the direction Midoriko and Davis took.

Subaki slowly stood. Her eyes were downcast and blank. Her shoulders slumped and her hair slowly fell into her face. The sound of soft chuckling brought her head up and Subaki's coal black eyes collided with deep crimson ones. She blink a little, not sure that there was actually someone standing in front of her or not.

A person, most likely a man, stood before her in a weird baboon pelt. It looked newly made and very soft. Red eyes glowed brilliantly from behind the mask part of the cloak and a tendril of obsidian hair peeked from the corner, curling slightly. Subaki raised an eyebrow and stood up straight, trying to gather her remaining dignity.

"Don't laugh at me." She said shortly and snorted in anger when the man's chuckles only grew in volume.

"I do not laugh at you, my pet." The man's deep sensuous voice struck a cord within her and she felt a strange drowsiness fill her mind. "I laugh at the fool who rejected something as perfect as yourself." He continued and Subaki put a hand to her head, trying to fight the dizziness filling her being.

The man took a step forward and Subaki took one back. "W-who are you?" She asked in slight fear and apprehension. The man took off the cloak and Subaki drew in a sharp breath. He was absolutely gorgeous. His dark, curly hair swirled around his angular face to trail to the small of his back. His chest was a broad, muscular expanse that Subaki felt the need to explore with her fingers.

The man cocked his lips into a sardonic smile and his eyes glittered with an unknown emotion. "I, my dear, am Naraku." He answered and Subaki felt the need to turn into a puddle of goop at his tone. His blood-red eyes twinkled in amusement as he again approached her, this time she didn't back up.

His pale hands reached up and cupped her face, looking into her dazed expression with glee. The spell was already taking effect. She was completely under his power, whether she knew it or not. A smirk graced his features as he silently commanded her to sleep. Picking her up, bridal style, Naraku turned his head to the direction a rather loud argument was coming from. It seems the other three would be back soon. It was time for him to leave with his prize.

Naraku leapt and floated in the air watching as the three came into their previous campsite and realized Subaki was no where in sight. He watched as the miko, Midoriko, scream out her sisters name and smirked. She was his original objective. Her beautiful chocolate eyes, haunting smile and wonderful scent.

Naraku inhaled deeply and tried to ignore the scent coming form Subaki, instead focusing on his obsessions scent. Thunderstorms and spring-time flowers was what she smelled like. Truly beautiful.

Midoriko had become his obsession since the first time he saw her step off the boat. He had wanted to take her then, to make her his. But, seeing the power in her gaze and sensing her purity, the need had changed slightly. He still wanted her, Kami how he did, but now he wanted to watch that powerful look in her eyes break and her being fill with hopelessness. To know that she knew that she was all alone and that everything would not be fine. He wanted to taint that purity within her, to watch it blacken with sorrow.

To do this, he needed a plan. This plan included the help of an already darkened miko and the two sailors before him. Killing off the others had been a necessity, but he had taken great pleasure in doing so. He hadn't planned on the insanity of the captain, but this too would be a great asset. Now to set the main plan into motion. All the pawns were in place, and he knew he would be victorious.

It was only a matter of time.

:With the guys outside the cave:

Kouga sighed as he stretched out his legs and stared out over the dark waves crashing against the side of the cliff. Beside him sat Michael, occasionally entertaining thoughts about pushing the annoying wolf over the cliff. Gabriel, who sat across from them and next to Sesshoumaru, smirked at hearing these thoughts and agreed that it would be kind of funny.

Inuyasha sat leaning against the barrier, the least affected by it since he was a hanyou. His amber gaze also stared out over the waves as he thought about something he hadn't thought about since he had gotten to the island. 'I wonder what happened with that shipment Sesshoumaru and I were supposed to oversee...'

Sesshoumaru's thoughts, however, were far from business. His eyes were focused on the barrier surrounding the cave entrance. His youki periodically stretched out and poked at it, seeing if it had any weaknesses since the last time he had poked it. No such luck. His eyes flashed slightly red as he tried to force down the frustration growing in the pit of his being. Normally he was a patient being, but this time his inner beast was awake and also frustrated.

'What could she be doing in there? There couldn't be another exit to this cave...could there?'

Sesshoumaru's eyes widened as he thought of this and took in a deep breath, trying to pick up the woman's scent. It was still there and still as strong as it had been when they had first arrived. 'She hasn't moved from where she's at, but there could still be another entrance.' He thought and looked over at the fidgeting wolf. A smirk lifted his lips and he sat up straighter.

Gabriel, Michael and Inuyasha instantly caught his movement and all three knew by the look in the taiyoukai's eyes, that something interesting was about to happen.

"Kouga." Sesshoumaru said into the still air and the wolf turned to look at him with slight wariness. "I have something for you to do."

Kouga narrowed his eyes and sat up straight as well. "Why would I do anything you told me to do?" he asked snidely as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Because if you don't, I'll kill you." Sesshoumaru answered in a cold serious air that slightly frightened Kouga. Kouga frowned and decided that whatever the taiyoukai was up to had to be more interesting then just sitting here.

Seeing that he had Kouga's attention, he turned to Inuyasha and his smirk grew. "This may require you as well, little brother." He said smoothly and Inuyasha wondered what the hell his brother could possibly be thinking.

"There may be another entrance to this cave. Michael, Gabriel and I will stay here and cover this entrance. Why don't you two search out the other entrance?"

Inuyasha held back a bitter laugh and eyed Sesshoumaru incredulously. "Do you think I'm stupid?" he asked and quickly continued when he saw Sesshoumaru's eyebrow lift. "You're gonna get rid of us and the damn barriers going to fall, and then you will have a shot at Kagome!"

Kouga remained quiet as he thought over the taiyoukai's proposition, for once. Although there was a chance that there was no other entrance, Kouga felt that the breeze coming FROM the cave indicated that there was, indeed, another entrance. There was also a chance that this other entrance didn't have a barrier. Kouga's icy blue eyes slid over to the arguing pair and then over to the winged assassins watching with amusement. If he was going to except without causing the other youkai to be tipped off, he needed to do this with finesse and skill.

He slid on a cocky grin and stood up, hands on his hips. "Whatever gets rid of this boredom AND you guys, I'll do it!" He said with his usual boastful voice and Inuyasha turned to him as if he were stupid. Sesshoumaru tried to conceal the smirk on his face and Gabriel and Michael thought the wolf was indeed as stupid as he looked.

Kouga walked out of the cave and up the side of the cliff, silently thinking the acting skills he had needed when he first became a detective. 'Thank you, Ginta!' He exclaimed in his head as he lifted his head and took a deep breath of air. This was a mistake.

The horrible stench coming off of the orange flowers before him caused him to choke and his eyes to water. As he hacked for air, he didn't notice the inu hanyou walking up the cliff behind him, scowling in anger.

"What the hell is wrong with you! Didn't you hear me explain WHY we weren't going to do this! Do you not know that if we leave and the barrier falls while we're gone, they'll get to Kagome first!"

Kouga ran a little away from the bush and took in gulps of air, studying the hanyou before him. He regained his breath and stood up, coming to a decision. He and the hanyou were looked down upon because of their brash nature. So it was natural to pair up in a team of sorts against the other three.

With these thoughts racing through his head, Kouga proceeded to tell Inuyasha just what exactly he was thinking of when he agreed. Inuyasha listened to the wolf and his anger faded as he came up with the same conclusion. There was a perfect chance that they would reach Kagome first after all.

XP:XD:XP

KC: There you go folks! I updated as fast as I could! Its a long chapter too! SO NO COMPLAINING! I would like to think everyone who reviewed and is still reading this fic! I greatly appreciate your support!

THANK YOU! XD


	9. The Arrival

A Tempting Fate

Chapter 9: The Arrival

By Kaguya's Chaos

Miroku stared up at the lightened sky with drawn brows and a serious tint to his eyes. His normally smiling mouth was turned upside down into a deep scowl as he thought about the ship that had sneaked in after them from behind. The one bringing Hojo and some chick, as well as Onigumo toward them.

Earlier that morning, at dawn precisely, the captain had called down to his and Sango's cabin to say a ship was following behind them. Miroku had stared at the intercom with sleep-confused eyes and slight irritation. He had argued that that was Taisho Industries ship, but the captain had argued that it was an unknown. Myojin's ship was BESIDE them, not behind.

Miroku clenched his fist in anger as he stared at the small white dot a little off in the horizon. 'So the little weasel is following us? Doesn't matter. I doubt he knows what he is getting himself into. Even though I hate to think of what it implies, Kagome is the only known grown woman on an island full of horny youkai males...I doubt ANYONE would be able to take her away if one of them claims her.'

His face darkened as his scarred right hand clenched even more so. 'If ANY of those bastards touches her in any way she doesn't approve of or hurts her in anyway, I will kill them. Important or not.' He vehemently thought as he glared to the water below him. He nearly jumped out of his skin when he felt a hand land on his shoulder.

Miroku whirled around to stare into the face of his wife and let out a small smile. Sango smiled back and hugged him. "Now it looks like you need to be comforted." She said with a slight laugh and Miroku smiled ruefully. His eyebrow rose and he stepped out of her arms to turn and stare into the pink and orange hued sky.

Sango sighed and wrapped her arms around his chest and pressed her cheek into his shoulder as she too stared out to sea. "We'll get there soon, and she'll be just fine. Smiling through an impossible tan and tattered shipwrecked clothes, looking for all her worth like she was a character from 'Giligan's Island'. Her arms will wave around and she'll launch herself into our arms shouting about the strange fish she had caught the day before and how she'd missed us while she'd been on the tropical island."

Miroku smirked as he pictured his perky cousin sitting in the white sand with a huge smile plastered to her slightly sunburned face. Sango seemed to picture the same thing and also smiled. Both were brought from their inner musings when a shout to their left alerted them to the approach of Myoga and a sour Jaken.

"Ahoy!" Myoga shouted, a grin on his face as he waved an arm about to gain their attention. Miroku grinned back and shouted back.

"What's up?"

"Have you noticed the ship following us?" Myoga asked and Sango frowned while Miroku answered with an animalistic snarl.

"Yeah. It's that bastard, Masaru!"

"What do we do about them?" Myoga asked, an interesting gleam in his eyes. Jaken and Sango watched and listened as the two men discussed, or rather shouted, their thoughts to one another.

"Nothing for now!"

Jaken frowned at the humans response and decided to enter the conversation.

"Why the hell not!"

Miroku groaned as he felt all eyes on him. He hadn't wanted to mention his reasoning's in front of Sango. She'd flip, what with the mention of mating and youkai and...stuff...No, telling her was out of the question.

"Uh..."

Myoga grinned as he picked up on the man's tentative thoughts. Although he had some semblance of what he meant, he heard the answer anyway. "Because to do so would slow us down when we could just reach the island and then beat the slime-ball down." Miroku said and Jaken seemed pacified, for the moment at least.

Myoga smiled and nodded while Jaken huffed and went back into the cabin he had to share with the flea youkai. Sango eyed her husband with suspicion then decided to let it go. She shook her head and headed back into the yacht herself.

Miroku watched as Myoga sat on the deck chair beside the rail and did likewise. As he did so, his eyes landed on the scars running over his right hand. It had been an accident that had caused his hand to shatter and his bones to be replaced by metal pieces. It had hurt. Of course it did, but Miroku hardly remembered how it had happened. All he remembered was coming to the building that his aunt had frequently gone to.

Then the next thing he knows he is in the hospital with his mother explaining that he had been pushed by a robber on the get-away and his hand had been run over as he lay in the street. He had been confused about the explanation, but was soon confirmed that this was indeed the truth.

The scar left behind in the aftermath reminded him everyday of why he hated cars. When he had first met Sango through Kagome, he had been worried that the girl, that would later become the love of his life, would think him a freak due to his scars. After a while she had said she hadn't cared about his scars and had hugged him. He had taken advantage of their position, and had taken his first feel from her behind.

He remembered Kagome's shocked face and Sango's fist flying at him before he again awoke in the hospital wondering how he had gotten there. Since then, he had devoted his time to convincing his amused cousin and new girlfriend his hand had been cursed. 'Who would have thought the angel of my dreams would marry me?' he asked himself as he stared out the now blue sky. He didn't notice the curious glances that Myoga kept sending his way.

:On the Island and in Kagome's mind:

Kagome stared at Midoriko with slight awe and sympathy. The woman had been through so much in such a short amount of time and yet she hadn't gone insane from it all. But the story was not over yet. There was still major holes in the plot and in some of the characters personalities. The whole thing with Subaki was so frustrating too!

'Why can't she see Midoriko was in love with the man first!'

Midoriko chuckled at the young woman listening to the story and tried not to answer the obvious question written all over her face. "There is still more to go...Now that I have rested my voice and collected my thoughts, would you like to continue?" She asked softly and Kagome rapidly nodded.

"I called for Subaki for hours. Damien and Davis told me to just give up. They said the 'fool girl' had gone and run off. I never thought of the fact that her reason for running off might have been Damien. He never did tell me what had been said when he had left her to come find Davis and myself. I had always assume he had just walked off and Subaki had stalked off in a huff. I never would have guessed that she would become as corrupted as she did. This was a mistake on my part. When next we saw her, it was the next morning, and she had looked so different..."

:Into the story:

Midoriko sat staring into the fire, tears trailing down her face. Her hands rested in her lap uselessly, and her shoulders where slumped. Her once lively eyes were dull, and her thoughts were reflected on her face. On each side of her sat Davis and Damien, both trying to soothe her while trying not to jump for joy at the thought of the missing woman.

Shifting slightly, Midoriko turned to the two men and gave a weak smile. "I'm going to get some rest. If...if Subaki comes back while I am asleep, would you two wake me please?" She asked, her voice terribly hoarse. Both men nodded and Midoriko sighed as she lay down and fell asleep, heedless of anything around her.

Davis said he would take the first watch and Damien nodded. He too lay down and fell asleep next to Midoriko.

The next morning, all three weary and worn humans trudged to an unknown destination, all life seemingly drained due to the defeated miko in their midst. Damien eyed the woman he loved and silently wished to hold her. To soothe the tortured look from her face and give some semblance of sympathy to the woman.

Guilt slightly chewed at his insides as he realized the annoying girl's disappearance was largely keyed by his hasty words from the other day. He hadn't meant to be so harsh, but he had sensed that his brother would move in on his woman and had wanted to go to her. The witch had thought to detain him and as such deserved the harsh treatment.

Davis glanced between the miko and his brother with a thoughtful look. He was almost positive the idiot had said something to the girl to make her run off. She was now probably dead, and it was Damien's fault. Now to tell Midoriko and get her to hate Damien.

Midoriko stopped at a random clearing and sat down. She licked her dry, cracked lips and silently wished for water. Not really thinking of what he was doing, Davis offered to head to the trickling water he heard and get her something to drink. Midoriko smiled appreciatively and said a broken, "Please...?" In response.

Damien watched his brother go but didn't think of anything other then the fact that he now had Midoriko all to himself, and he was going to tell her how he felt. Even though it was an inappropriate time, he couldn't do this anymore. He couldn't pine after a woman in his company and not tell her how he felt. It just couldn't be done! The awkward silences, the stolen glances, the erotic dreams! His face flushed as he thought of the latest one he had had last night...

Midoriko sensed the way Damien was tensed and looked toward him. Her dark brown eyes melted into a light chocolate and a small smile stretched her face. "What's the matter, Damien?" She asked softly and watched as the man fidgeted around a bit. He avoided her eyes and a hint of worry colored her emotions.

Damien gulped down the nerves trying to choke him and tried to look at the object of his affections. This was harder then he thought it was. 'W-where do I begin? "Midoriko, I love you!" No...to abrupt...how about... "I know this may sound strange, but I like you..." No...too wish-y wash-y...' He continued to think to himself and when Midoriko voiced his question, he blurted the first thing that came to mind.

"I'm worried about Subaki." His eyes widened, as well as hers. 'SHIT! NO! WRONG THING!' He shouted at himself as he watched a strange emotion paint over her eyes. He had meant to express sympathy to her about her sister to get in her good graces first and had blurted it out all wrong. His heart sank as he watched a polite detachment settle over the miko's face and she plastered on a fake smile. 'Great job, Damien! Remind her of her missing sister, why don't you!'

Midoriko was startled at Damien's reply and tried to keep the heartbreak from showing. 'He loves her...' She thought despairingly as she tried to put a reassuring smile on her face. 'T-the least I can do is console him until we...find Subaki...'

"Oh..." She wound up saying and tried to smother the sob that wanted to climb out after it. "Well, I-I'm sure we'll f-find her..." She finished lamely and Damien stared in horror as the woman turned away, tears glimmering in her eyes. Without a thought as to what he was doing, he grabbed a hold of her shoulder and turned her to him. At the same time, he leaned forward and placed his other hand on her damp cheek.

Their lips met in a short, surprised, motion and both closed their eyes at the heat coursing through them from the action. Midoriko's tears fell still from her eyes as she allowed herself to indulge in the feel of her secret love's attention. Damien moved both hands to cup her cheeks and wiped the salty tears away.

Midoriko moaned and tensed, feeling herself wake up from the sudden trance she had fallen under. She pushed away as tears fell in a quick recession down her flushed face. Her shimmering eyes looked up into his confused emeralds in silent torment. Damien watched as a pain filled emotion covered her beautiful features. 'What...?'

"I can't do this Damien! Not when-"

"You love Davis, then." Damien interrupted, stating more then asking, and Midoriko looked up in startled confusion. Damien shot to his feet and paced away from her. His heart was slowly cracking as he tried to reign in the urge to scream and cry out in frustration and loss. Midoriko stood up and walked over to the man, slight hope growing in her own broken and mangled heart.

"Dam-"

"If you love him, then-" Damien interrupted her once again, only to be silenced by Midoriko's fingers on his lips. Midoriko stared up into his own tormented eyes and nearly cried out in joy as the obvious made itself known to her. Damien loved her, not her sister.

She leaned forward and tugged the man down to her as she kissed him with all the pent up need, attraction and frustration kept inside of her. Damien's eyes widened as he tried to process what was happening exactly. His heart skipped a broken beat only to race in excitement. Had he read her wrong? Did she love him as much as he did her?

Both held each other with a fervor born of desperation and love. Both trying to convey their feelings while trying to shut out the outside world.

:.evil.:

Subaki watched from the trees in disbelief. Beside her, Naraku smirked in triumph. The whole scene could not have gone better, if he did say so himself. What he was even more delighted to discover was that the older brother was crouching in the bushes, also watching the scene, water canteens forgotten on the ground. Ahhhh. Delicious drama...

Subaki felt her body go numb as she watched the two kiss and embrace, hungrily. Her heart had shattered at the fact that the man she had fallen for and her own sister were going at each other as if they were starved. Her mind was at a standstill as she watched the two in a morbid sense of fascinated horror.

Midoriko let out a slight moan and Subaki's thoughts kicked back to life. And the first thought to cross her mind? 'THAT BITCH!'

Davis watched in rage as his brother embraced the woman he had wanted himself. Feelings of betrayal and heartache were on the forefront as well. 'How dare he!' He wanted to scream as he watched the two get into it even more so. A wave of nausea hit him and he stumbled back a few paces.

The twigs snapping under his foot didn't alert the two and Davis felt the urge to run. Giving into this feeling he turned tail and left. Up above, Subaki had caught the motion and watched as the captain ran, a plan forming in her tainted mind. She leapt off the branch and after the man. Her newly changed silver hair flashing behind her.

Naraku tore his envious gaze from the two to watch his latest creation run off after the other sailor. He knew the two of them would team up and had decided to watch from a distance as the drama unfolded. He had only set the stage, now it was time for the show.

As he left toward his lair, he thought over the interesting night he had had with the young, dark miko and the way she had been in bed. True, he had thought of Midoriko throughout the whole experience, and may have cried out her name at some point, but he had enjoyed the woman's "charms".

During his "encounter" with the miko, he had slipped in some of his blood, changing the miko into a miko-youkai half-breed. Her hair had changed to a gray-ish silver and her eyes had hardened into a glacial blue-violet. It seems his blood had an adverse affect on her, because scars had appeared over the top of her veins, creating a criss-cross of intricate lines. Unfortunately, they were very noticeable, but a glamour spell kept those covered.

She was an all-in-all successful experiment...now to catch the older sister...

:With Subaki and Davis:

Subaki watched with slight disgust as the man emptied his stomach content on the floor of the forest. The stream beside him gurgled as if in disgust as well. As soon as he had started to dry heave, Subaki had slowly approached him, trying to ignore the acrid scent wafting toward her.

Davis stood up and turned, wiping his face clean with his dirty sleeve. He stopped short to see the beauty before him. The long exotic silver hair was the first to catch his attention. The violet eyes and wicked smile played a part in his enrapture as well. Without a thought as to what would happen, he approached the woman before him.

Subaki watched the mesmerized captain and a spark of hope entered her now decrepit heart. Maybe if she approached Damien, he would react in a similar fashion and leave her traitorous sister behind? Just as quickly as it had appeared, the hope disappeared and Subaki felt a rush of malice fill the space. She turned her full attention on the man before and her grin broadened.

"Hello, captain. How have you been this last day?" She asked and was a little disappointed her voice was still the same. Davis seemed to be equally disappointed before his eyes widened as he recognized that annoying voice.

"S-Subaki? Is that YOU!" He asked incredulously as he took a step back from her changed form. "What the hell happened to you!"

A sneer passed over Subaki's face as she relived the last day in her head. Sure Naraku was good looking, but he sure as hell was lacking in the bedroom department. 'Who taught him to have sex anyway? Monkeys!'

She dashed these thoughts from her mind and focused on the sailor before her once again. "I have been through some...interesting...things. Lets just say I've changed for the better." Her smile fell into a dramatically hurt frown. "I come back to you guys only to see my sister and Damien...!" She trailed off and added some fake tears for effect.

Davis sure was as dense as she thought when he instantly believed her act. His eyes frosted over and his posture stiffened. He stumbled over to her and put his arms around her, trying to comfort her. Subaki wrinkled her nose at the slight stench coming from him. 'Ugh, doesn't he ever bathe?'

"It's alright. I too was shocked that Midoriko-san would fall for that bastards tricks!" Davis growled out and Subaki stiffened. 'How dare he blame Damien! It was stupid Midoriko who-' She cut off her own thoughts as she remembered Damien's hurtful words before she was "kidnapped". 'Then again, he is a bastard.'

Davis stared down at the crown of the woman's silver head and smirked. He had seen through her hurtful act and knew she was just stringing him along. He was angry at the couple and hadn't faked the rage in his being, but he went along with whatever she was trying to do.

'This may help lead me to the one who killed off my crew, and get rid of Damien along the way...'

:out of the story for now:

Kagome stared at Midoriko in fascinated silence. She had been describing the intense emotions she had felt while kissing Damien and Kagome had to admit, she was envious. 'Hojo never made me feel like that...' She thought scowling at the artificial grass underneath her. In front of her Midoriko stared off into space, a silly grin splashed over her face and her eyes twinkling with their own light.

Staring at the woman once again, Kagome sighed and reclined against the ground. Her blue eyes turned to gaze into the perfect blue sky and fluffy white clouds. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Midoriko's soft voice reached her ears yet again.

"Both Davis and Subaki came back to the camp at the same time about an hour after our first kiss. I was shocked at the change my little sister had undergone. Her hair was an unnatural gray-ish silver. Her eyes were like the depths of a frozen lake, cold, blue and riddled with hidden dangers. Her skin looked unhealthily pale and her expression was of veiled malicious contempt.

"Davis looked neutral, as if he hadn't noticed Subaki's change. Damien hadn't noticed his brother's strange behavior, and, truth be told, I hadn't either. Subaki had stolen the attention, and perhaps this had been her intent.

"She had sat within our camp without any awkward feelings. She didn't give any details on where she had been, or what had happened to her. The only thing she had admitted to was that she had changed, but for the better. I hadn't questioned her on it, only too happy to overlook the strangeness of the situation and thank the Kami for her safe return to me.

"This had proven to be my downfall..."

:Back into our "happy" story:

Midoriko walked behind Subaki and Davis, Damien right beside her. Her hand was firmly clasped within Damien's own as they searched about them warily. Subaki seemed to be chatting amiably with Davis about random things, and the former captain seemed to listen with half an ear.

Damien smiled down at the miko beside him and tried to keep from kissing her. After he had learned of her feelings for him and had convinced her of his own, he couldn't seem to keep his hands, or his thoughts, off her. Midoriko glanced up and caught his green eyes in her own. They both stared deeply into the others eyes, communicating the longing both felt.

Neither saw the disgusted glance from both Davis and Subaki directed in their direction.

"So where are we headed, Captain?" Subaki forced through gritted teeth as she turned angry eyes and a forced smile on Davis. Davis frowned and turned his gaze back to the front, well, his front anyway. His green eyes darkened into a blackish color as he stared into the equally blackened forest.

'Where are we going? WHERE are we going! What the hell kind of question is that? And how shall I answer that? "Oh...over into those trees there, and after a while...off into more trees...and eventually into the ocean!" What an idiot.' Davis thought as he tried to keep his anger from showing in his face.

The other day, Subaki and himself had come to an agreement, just before they had reached the campsite. They would try to separate the 'happy' couple behind them. Subaki had fooled Midoriko into not questioning her on her strange disappearance and then her new look. Damien hadn't pressed it as the fool was too interested in Midoriko to care about her sister. But Davis knew better.

Something had happened to the girl and he was willing to stake his life on the fact that the murderer, that had desecrated his men, was the one who had done this. Who the hell else would be on this god-forsaken island!

Just as Davis's thoughts had come full circle, a strong, feminine voice called out to them, halting their fruitless trek.

"Well, well, well. What have we here?"

Midoriko's head shot up to stare at the woman standing on a tree branch above them. The woman's black hair was twisted into a bun atop her head and her eyes were a glowing crimson in the darkened canopy. The woman's clothes were an outlandish red and white and in her hand she held a fan, covering the bottom half of her face.

"Who are you?" Damien asked out loud and Subaki's eyes narrowed in recognition. She had seen this woman in Naraku's lair.

"I am called Kagura of the wind." The woman, now identified as Kagura, said loftily as she clicked the fan shut and smirked at them, showing her delicate fangs and slightly pointed ears. 'She's a youkai!' Midoriko thought as she watched the woman for a moment then turned her eyes to Subaki in slight worry.

Kagura's eyes slid over the group in mild interest until her gaze landed on her master's little project. She smirked inside her head as she remembered the woman's grumbling yesterday morning. Talking about monkey lovers and what not. 'If only she knew!' She remembered crowing to herself as she smirked at the youkai-turned miko.

Kagura glanced over at the miko that was Naraku's true objective and fought the urge to wince in sympathy for the woman. Midoriko's brown eyes were glued to Kagura with wary interest. 'No doubt admiring my lovely kimono.' Kagura thought in smug satisfaction as she raised her fan to hide her smirk.

"What do you want!" Davis shouted and Kagura smirked down at the captain. 'You.' She thought and laughed mentally at the corny clichéd line. 'Yeah, right!' She tampered down her humor and replaced her smirk with an emotionless mask.

"I'm afraid this isn't going to be a pleasant visit. I am here to test you, you could say." She said and raised her fan, planning her attack, even as the small unfortunate band before her, scrambled for a way to withstand the coming attack. Midoriko took a step back and withdrew the bow and arrows she had been working on since late last night.

Damien stood in front of Midoriko and Davis stood beside him. Subaki stepped out of the line of fire and watched with narrowed eyes as the man she wanted and the man she was using defended the woman who had betrayed her.

:With Midoriko and Kagome:

Kagome's hands fisted in the grass as she leaned forward, anticipating the details of the fight. Midoriko watched the young woman with a smile and shook her head sadly.

"I do not remember the fight so well, only the after affects. Subaki had chased after Kagura, supposedly to 'finish her off', as she claimed she was doing. She came back empty handed and with the excuse that the 'coward had run too fast'. Damien had been wounded...terribly. Th-there was so much blood! Davis had slight scratches and whatnot along his arms, but nothing like Damien had. I had no more arrows left of the fifty or so I had made. Shallow cuts were ringed around my arms and legs but again nothing serious.

"Davis and I, and later Subaki, carried Damien into a cave with a waterfall." Midoriko looked sharply to Kagome as the young woman's sapphire eyes raised to her own. "One I am sure you know very well. The same one you were taken to, to heal.

"I had spent the night and the whole of the next day tending to the wounds along his body. Davis had helped, but he was steadily losing touch with reality. Talking to rocks and his reflection in the water. Subaki had stayed withdrawn and in the back of the cave, watching everything with sharp eyes. I think, that was when I first started to doubt my sister. And Davis."

Midoriko became quiet and stared down into the field before them. Her miko robes moved gently in the breeze, and her long dark brown hair swayed in time with the unvoiced melody.

"A day after sitting with Damien, I realized he wasn't going to get better. His body burned with fever, his wounds were infected with gangrene, and he had lost his eyesight. Blood continually flowed, whether from his wounds, his mouth or his nose. He had been wounded internally and there was nothing I could do. I stayed by his side and kept him as cool as I could, knowing, almost from the beginning, that he wouldn't make it. That our love would end, before it could even begin.

"For nearly two days I stayed in the cave and watched as my love slowly died. The second night, he passed away in a fit of pain. I had wished I had died along with him, but to do so would be selfish of me. For I had a duty to uphold and his death only reminded me strongly of what it was I was there for. What it was that had gotten all of us stuck on the damn island, sending us all to our deaths."

Midoriko paused in her story, and Kagome watched the woman with tearing eyes. Her heart wrenched for the pain the miko felt. Even as Midoriko looked up into Kagome's eyes, Kagome felt her sympathy and pity dissipate into a sense of foreboding.

"What had started it all, and continues to do so this day...

"The Shikon no Tama."

:Lets go to the one's we forgot:

Shippo tugged on Rin's hand incessantly and tried to coax her into leaving the tree-line. He stood with his free hand on his left hip, his mouth set into a grim line and his head tilted in a condescending way. Rin couldn't help but think he looked just like their father in that pose. She stifled back more tears and frowned back at the stubborn kitsune in front of her.

"No! Shippo! The bad man might be out there! Looking for us! We can't go to the beach! What about Kagome-onee-chan! What will she say when she figures out we left the cave? What do you think she will do? What about Sesshoumaru-sama and the others? They looked pretty mad at Kagome-onee-chan when she left the cave! And they chased her into the woods! What if we were supposed to go after them and try to help her! What if-"

"Rin! Stop! Kami!" Shippo shouted and Rin instantly shut her mouth. Tears lined her eyes and threatened to spill, but never reached her lashes. 'If that Naraku-guy hadn't already known where we were, he will now! She just had to open that large mouth of hers!' He thought as he dragged the semi-reluctant Rin behind him toward the abandoned beach they had washed up on.

He sat down on the still warm sand and watched as a thin line of fuchsia and orange dotted the wavy horizon. Beside him, Rin also sat, exhausted over the trek they had embarked on to get to the beach. Why were they at the beach? She didn't know. Shippo had shot to his feet as soon as the adults had run off to play tag in the woods. He had said something like not wanting to be watched and then had started out of the waterfall.

Rin sighed as she watched the sun rise marginally. Her eyes caught a brief glimmer of movement on the horizon and squinted, trying to catch what it was.

"Are...are those...monkeys?" Shippo asked and both kits turned their heads to stare at the other incredulously.

:XD:

KC: OK! I'll try to lay off the monkeys!

:XD:

Inuyasha lifted his nose into the air and tried to get the scent he sought after with such a desperation. Beside him, Kouga was doing the same in a similar fashion. Both had swept over the four miles that covered the west side of the island. They had searched the cliff side and a half-mile inland, decided that the second opening had to be near the open air to produce a slight breeze.

Kouga sighed as he felt his slight hope start to dissipate. Inuyasha glanced over at the wolf and growled. "Dammit, Kouga! Get your ass up! The sun's coming up! We don't have time to waste on sitting around in idle wonder!" He shouted and took a deep breath to calm down, just as a breeze "incidentally" wafted a particular scent passed his nose.

He froze as Kouga opened his mouth to argue back. He drowned out the wolf's protests and concentrated on the faint scent. 'Yes...it's definitely Kagome's.' He thought as he raced off in the direction it was coming from without a word to Kouga.

Kouga, for his part, was in the middle of his favorite rant about how hanyou dog's were awful creatures, when he too caught the scent. His whole body froze and then sprang into action, closely following the hanyou.

Over and under branches, bushes, sticks, creatures and anything else Kami put in their path, they traced the scent to a very well hidden cave facing out to sea, much like the other one. The only difference? There was no Sesshoumaru, Michael, Gabriel...or annoying barrier. With triumphant smirks, both idiots, I mean "hero's", entered the cave to track the scent of the woman they wanted to claim for themselves.

:with Sesshoumaru:

An eye twitched. A leg spasm caught the eye. A hand clenched, and a throat let out an agonized sigh of frustration. Sesshoumaru kept his eyes closed and tried to block out the outside annoyances. Beside him, Gabriel kept just as still, meditating. Beside Gabriel, Michael was fidgeting around like a fish on land.

"Why are we even waiting here!" The assassin burst out and Sesshoumaru ignored the fool, while internally he asked the same question to himself.

'Why am I waiting out here? For that human woman, no less?' He asked the question to himself once again for the seventh time since he had gotten complete control over his body and mind. His inner beast purred in the back of his mind and his hand tightened in slight annoyance. 'Is it simply because it is mating season? Or is there another reason?'

He shifted at this thought and a slight frown marred his serene features. 'Could I have...could I have feelings for her? For Kagome?' His frown deepened briefly before it was wiped clean off of his face. While outside he looked calm and complacent, inside his mind waged an internal temper tantrum. 'It's not possible!'

But no matter how he kept telling himself this, a small part of him strongly disagreed. Just as he was about to smother the voice completely and assert himself he cared nothing for the woman, the barrier broke and Kagome's strong scent hit their noses.

Michael, Gabriel and Sesshoumaru shot to their feet and gazed into the cave with shocked trepidation. For not only did Kagome's scent reach them, but also Kouga's and Inuyasha's. Without a word being said, all three shot into the cave and followed the girls scent closely. The sunlight peaked over the edge of the cliff and lit the threshold of the cave, signaling the beginning of the day that would change all of their lives.

:Back with Rin and Shippo:

Rin idly kicked at the sand in irritation as Shippo poked at a washed ashore jellyfish with a stick. Neither paid attention to the water or the three boats coming closer to their small beach. They didn't notice, that is, until a strange scent met their noses. Both shot to their feet as they looked up to see the white ships just off shore.

"Shippo!" Rin squealed as she rushed to her brother in slight fright. Shippo stood gaping at the boats and the smaller crafts carrying people onto the shore.

"HEY!" A faint shout from one of the boats caused the children to jump and tears to cloud their eyes. The two small boats closest to the beach hit sand and a man leapt over the side running toward them.

Shippo felt a tear slip over his eyelids as he pushed Rin behind him and stared at the violet eyed, short black haired man running in their direction.

"We're saved." Rin whispered in a hushed voice as she shoved her face into Shippo's back, sobbing slightly in relief. The man reached the two children and slid to his feet in front of them. Without warning, both kits shot at the man and cried into his shirt in happiness.

"We're saved!" Both shouted as they sobbed into the silk shirt. They didn't notice the approach of two old men or the young lady. The man awkwardly pat their backs and murmured words of comfort. Shippo looked up at the man and for a moment he saw Kagome reflected in this man. 'A-are they related?'

"Are you related to Kagome-onee-chan?" Rin asked as she too pushed away from the man to notice the resemblance. The young man's eyes widened and, with a strange mixed look of worry and excitement in his eyes, leaned forward and nodded.

"Yes! I'm her cousin! Do you know where she is?" the man asked as he grabbed their shoulders and shook them slightly.

"Miroku. Don't shake them!" The lady who stood beside the one known as Miroku said in reprimand as Rin tried to stifle her renewed tears. Miroku sighed and sat back slightly, letting the children go.

"Hi. My name's Sango." The woman said as she leaned down and smiled at them warmly. Rin smiled back and Shippo kept his silence. The two old men behind the younger couple approached and the particularly grouchy looking one opened his big mouth. "Who cares about that, woman! Sesshoumaru-sama is still missing! We have to-"

"You know Sesshoumaru-sama too!" Rin yelled out and all eyes swung to her. She stepped behind Shippo in shyness and peeked from behind him. Shippo looked Miroku in the eye and finally opened his mouth.

"They aren't here. They ran into the woods." He said and got blank stares in response. It was going to be a long day, but well worth it. Rin thought as she and Shippo began to recite all that had happened on the island since they had landed. None of them noticed the three people standing behind them, listening with rapt attention.

Neither did they notice the two sets of red eyes watching from above.

:XD:

KC: There you go folks. I have finished the latest installment for now. I was originally going to finish Midoriko's story and put in Sesshoumaru/Kagome fluff...but I figure I can make you wait a LITTLE longer...XD Well, Miroku and the gang have finally landed on the damn island! Yay!

I want to thank EVERYONE who reviewed! You give me the courage I need to continue with my crack-pot ideas. Thank you. I have saved EVERY review I have received for a reason. I am going to thank you all in the last chapter. I promise!

I ran some of my future ideas for the story passed my best friend and she said they were good idea's. So if you hate them...BLAME HER! J/K! I will try to have the next chapter out as soon as my poor hands can type it up! School is a pain in the ass and my teachers are homework fanatics. :sigh:

Love you all and I hope you RR!

.XD.


	10. The Shikon

-1A Tempting Fate

Chapter 10: The Shikon

By Kaguya's Chaos

Shippo finished off the tale just as Rin had slipped into a troubled sleep. Both had been up the whole night, too scared to rest for even a moment. Miroku listened to all that had happened with angered horror. Kagome had been through so much! Wounded, poisoned, kidnapped, chased, and who knows what else! Sango listened to the part where Kagome had run off into the forest in fear and stifled the tears that threatened to fall. This Shippo kid was a great story teller.

"And then Rin and I came down onto the beach to wait for sunrise." Shippo finished as he snuggled his sister closer to him and stared at the people from the boats. The lady, Sango, looked devastated. The man with the priest powers, Miroku, looked royally pissed. The flea youkai looked amazed and the toad looked disturbed.

"So there is a hanyou on this island other then Inuyasha." The flea said and Shippo met his glance.

"Yes. He calls himself Naraku." The small kit said again and stifled the yawn that threatened to overtake his mouth. Beside him Rin moved and let out a small cry. "Kagome-nee…" She whispered and Shippo looked down at the girl in slight worry.

Sango looked down at the kid as well and picked her up, situating her in her arms. Shippo looked up at her in gratitude and then looked passed her to stare at the three people behind her. Miroku noticed his gaze and felt the presence of Hojo, Onigumo and the woman, Kikyou. He didn't turn around immediately. Instead he stood up slowly and growled in a low voice. "You aren't needed here, Masaru."

Hojo looked to the young man and smirked. "I think that I am…My Kagome needs me and so I will go to her." He said in a sickeningly smooth voice. Shippo frowned in confusion. Not once had Kagome mentioned having a man in her life…not that she really had the chance. This certainly threw a wrench in his plans to get Kagome and Sesshoumaru together.

Miroku stiffened even more so and turned around. Hojo faltered at the look of absolute hatred on his face. "She will never be yours, you son of a bitch." He whispered fiercely and Sango stood up just as tall beside her husband. It was, surprisingly, Onigumo who had stopped the beginnings of what could have been a fight.

"What the hell is that!" He shouted and all eyes turned to see him staring at the sky in confused fear. They all looked up to see a blindingly white cloaked person and dark haired woman floating high above them. Shippo let out a shriek of terror that could only be deciphered as, "Naraku!" Miroku, Myoga, Sango and Jaken were instantly alert. Hojo stared in dumbstruck horror, as did Kikyou. Onigumo was already swimming back to the boat. He had a really bad feeling.

Onigumo reached the boat and hoisted himself up the ladder and over the side. He had first felt a tugging at something within himself when he had looked up to see what was calling him. Seeing the white clad figure up there had triggered something from deep within himself. A feeling as if there was something really wrong with this situation. That he wasn't going to live for very long.

Above and in the sky, Naraku watched the scrambling Onigumo try to get on the ship just off shore. His lip curled in slight confusion as he tried to think of where he had seen the man before. 'I've been on this accursed island for over 6 hundred years…where could I have-' He suddenly thought of something that he hadn't thought of since Midoriko had died.

A slow dangerous smirk tilted his lips and a chuckle rose form his throat. Yes, he knew who the man was. He knew him very well, as if they were family. 'Yes…family…'

Kagura stared at the evil hanyou beside her and tried to stifle the sinking feeling inside of her. She also knew who the man was and was currently cursing the idiot for coming to this island. He had, unknowingly, made everything oh so much worse. Naraku's chuckling reached her sensitive ears and Kagura stifled the urge to groan.

'Where was that bottle of vodka when you needed it?'

:With Kagome:

Kagome stared at Midoriko in confusion. Her blue eyes speaking of her slight fear and mild recognition. 'Where have I heard of the Shikon no Tama?' She asked herself continually and ran a hand through her hair. It was just as her fingers were reaching the ends of her raven hair that a memory hit her like a ton of bricks.

"_You have the Shikon no Tama."_

Midoriko watched the young woman with sad eyes that told the truth of this memory more then anything else. Kagome felt immense confusion fill her being as she silently asked how that could be. Midoriko sighed as she tried to recall exactly how the jewel had come to be. How the whole nightmare, that was fated to be repeated, started.

It had been created by accident by a little girl who had no idea what it was she had done. On a terribly rainy night and in a time of great vulnerability, a lone voice had called out to a sobbing little girl, standing over the broken body of her family. Midoriko shuddered as the full memory hit her sharply. The pact she had made with the being in the dark, her premature powers ripped from her petite body, and the resurrection of her mother, father and younger sister.

Kagome spoke softly, drawing Midoriko from her little nightmare. "So, how did you die? What happened to Davis? And Subaki?"

"It all went by quickly after Damien died. Davis went crazy and ran off into the forest, leaving Subaki and myself alone. Subaki had gone mute. She didn't say anything other then to state that Damien wasn't supposed to die. She wouldn't look at me. I couldn't take the pressure in the atmosphere any more so I took off after Davis. Subaki just sat there, staring into space.

"I think that was when I realized that we had all been driven insane. I wondered around by myself for two days before I found Davis's body. He had killed himself by slitting his wrists. At least, I believed he had committed suicide at the time. I buried his body where I could and headed back to where I thought the cave was."

Kagome watched as Midoriko's eyes became glassy and her shoulders slumped. "I reached the cave and Subaki was no where to be found. That's when I resigned myself to my fate. But there were still questions swimming through my head. Why were we being tortured this way? Why did the storm leave us here in this hell? Did God abandon us here? Was it my fault because of the creation of this hideous piece of jewelry?

"On and on the questions went until the fourth day of my idyll thoughts. Naraku had decided to visit me once again. This time he wasn't hidden in that awful monkey suit of his. He had floated there taunting me over the death of Davis and Damien and the disappearance of Subaki. It wasn't until he mentioned the Shikon that I lost it. We fought for a long time, both of us doing extensive damage. He had these…freaky tentacles that shot out of his very body, so when you do fight him, beware of them. He had his tentacles, but I had the power of the Shikon and my own regained energy. He wouldn't last and it showed as I got him in the shoulder and down he went.

"In the end, just as I was about to finish him off, Subaki had shown up. I, at first, had false hope that she would help me and we could escape the damn island. Unfortunately, I should have also taken into account her deranged mind and new change. My own sister literally stabbed me in the back. The pain in the knowledge that my own sister had betrayed me was more intense then the pain in my back from her sword.

"Before I could actually die, three things happened. The first, was Naraku also decapitated Subaki before my fading eyesight. I was filled with such rage, that I had made a last request of the jewel that I had in my possession. My wish was for the jewel to go and choose a successor in which I could have revenge. A reincarnation, if you will. You, Kagome."

Kagome stared wide-eyed at the woman and her mouth gaped open. "I am your reincarnation?" She asked hoarsely and Midoriko smiled sadly. "W-what was the last thing that happened?" Kagome asked, trying to piece all of the story, the past and present, together. Midoriko leaned back and stared up at the darkening sky. A frown marred her features and a strange gleam entered her eyes.

"Naraku had also created a double of himself for when the Shikon would reappear." Kagome frowned as well and then smiled slightly, confusion in her eyes.

"But, we are on a deserted island…his double isn't here."

Midoriko looked up to the girl and shook her head. "Your cousin and a few others have landed on the island. As well as Naraku's double. It seems fate has decided that the past must be repeated. It is time for you to awaken Kagome, there are many others awaiting your return."

The scenery started to disappear and Kagome opened her mouth to protest. "Good luck, my little one. Take care of yourself, and do not fear the power within you. Trust the youkai that are on your side! And say hello to Damien for me!" Was the last thing Kagome heard before she was rudely awakened by choking on lukewarm water.

She stood up abruptly and shook her head. Her hands came up and brushed the large wet clumps of obsidian locks out of her face. She got out of the water and shivered at the sudden blast of cold air on her body. Her back stiffened as she sensed beings closing in on her from both openings of the cave and dove for her clothes, thankful that they were warm and dry. Well, not for long, due to her own wet body.

She got dressed as quickly as her stubborn clothes would allow and tied her hair back with a strip of torn clothing. She sat down and looked down at her leg to inspect the wound that had been there. She hadn't had time to look over herself when she had first awoken, only to make a mad dash for the cave she now rested in. A slight scar was visible, probably due to the poison that had been injected, only to be rejected by her powers.

The thought of these powers made her think of the reality of her position. 'Oh my lord. I am trapped on a hellish island with crazy youkai, evil monkey-men (Naraku), and two children to worry about. She sighed and stood slowly, rubbing her arms to rid herself of the chill now entering the cave. 'Wait…chill? But, there was a barrier that blocked…oh shit!' She thought just as three beings flew at her from one side and two from the other.

Kagome threw herself to the ground and rolled as her instincts dictated for her to do. The brief barks and threatening growls hovered just over her shoulder no matter where she moved. Her heart pounded in adrenaline and fear. 'What the hell is wrong with these guys!' She thought as she ducked her head and dodged a wide sweep of an arm.

All action stopped when a very loud and VERY scary growl thrummed threw the floor and reverberated inside Kagome's very bones. The fine hairs along her neck and arms stood on end and her wide eyes stared blankly ahead of her, afraid to move. Kouga, Inuyasha and the two unknown youkai stood in front of her panting and glaring with anger and slight fear at whoever was standing behind her.

Kagome put two and together and guessed that the one behind her was Sesshoumaru and he was the one to let out the hair-raising growl. She let out a startled 'eep!' when she felt two muscular arms fold around her stiffened body and an object identified as a nose press into her neck. The weird of sensation of hot puffs on her neck told her he was breathing in her scent and she stifled the urge to shudder at the way it made her feel.

The arms tightened slightly and Kagome felt him nuzzle next to her ear. This time she could hear him sniffing at her. 'Oh God. Please don't have him eat me! I don't want to die!' She thought as she tried to shift forward some, showing her discomfort. A loud growl was her answer and the arms became impossibly tight bands of steel. 'OH GOD I'M GONNA DIE!'

Her back came into complete contact with Sesshoumaru's and her mind froze. If the hard object jabbing into her lower back was any indication, she was definitely not going to die anytime soon… 'Oh my god! Sesshoumaru's horny!'

An answering growl sounded in front of her and Kagome looked up to see Inuyasha with his teeth bared and his triangular…adorable…fluffy…ears…laid back. Kagome felt her hand twitch and she fidgeted again. 'How cute!' Was her only thought, completely forgetting about where she was. That is…until she felt a furry appendage slid up her leg and wrapped around her waist. She glanced down and saw what she could only describe as a fluffy white tail.

Her eyes lit up and she slowly lifted her hand. Unknown to her, she had everyone's eyes on her, and her strange mood changes. Kagome let out a slight squeal as her fingers found the soft fur and she let out a slight giggle when the tail twitched under her hand. Her giggle's stopped and her breath hitched when Sesshoumaru nuzzled further into her neck and low purr echoed in her ears.

Her hand's stopped their movements and her face lit up in a blush.

"Er, sorry!" She said quietly and cringed at the echo-y quality it had due to the cave walls. "Um, can you let me go, Sesshoumaru?" She asked as she again tried to get out of the tight embrace.

"Yeah, fluffy! Let her go!" Inuyasha nearly shouted and caused Sesshoumaru to growl. Kagome shifted to the side, trying to loosen his arms and she was immediately turned to face a fanged, red-eyed, Sesshoumaru.

'Uh oh…This is not good.'

:with those by the sea:

Sango clutched the little girl closer and twined her other hand with her husbands. Miroku gripped Sango's hand and took an involuntary step backwards. Shippo was gripping onto the nearest leg and staring up at the floating youkai with hatred and fear.

Hojo, being the evil idiot he is, was the first to break the silence with a loud, "WHAT THE HELL!" Kikyou uneasily stepped away from the slightly dense man and more towards the boats. Sure she was a bitch, but she wasn't stupid THAT stupid. She's seen those movies where the first one to draw attention dies, and she did not want to die before she got a hold of her money, er, Inuyasha!

Naraku stared down at those before him and smirked. Kagura slumped on her feather and wished she had something strong to drink. Stopping at that thought she realized she was going to become an alcoholic, and all thanks to the idiots in her life. She shifted her red eyes to the one who forced her to call him master and awaited his orders. For surely, there would be some blood shed as a welcome party for these poor fools.

And she wasn't disappointed as Naraku chuckled and flung a hand out, indicating free attack. Kagura sighed and raised her hand above her head. Letting a forced smirk stretch her features she brought the fan down letting the wind rush past her to slice at those below her.

Myoga and Jaken both let out shrieks and rushed for the forest for cover. Miroku leapt at Sango and knocked both her and Rin to the ground. Shippo, who had been clutching at Miroku's leg was flung into the direction of the forest. Hojo howled in fear and jumped toward the waves, seeking safety and Kikyou just stood there screaming.

Kagura floated down toward the scattering humans and again attacked, providing the perfect distraction for Naraku. Meanwhile, Naraku was hunting down his own prey.

'_Onigumo…'_

He whispered in his head and smirked when the scent of terror washed over him from the captains cabin of the boat the man was hiding in.

'_Onigumo…come out, come out, where ever you are…'_

Onigumo bit his lip and squeezed his eyes shut. His heart was pounding and yet, he still heard the oily smooth voice tainted in malice roll through his mind.

'_Don't you want to play, my pet?'_

Onigumo's breath sped up and his chest heaved. He opened his eyes and searched for a weapon. ANY kind of weapon. His beady little eyes landed on a shot gun and he leapt at it, just as the door was blasted open.

'_Found you!'_

:XD:

KC: Ok, I know this is extremely short compared to how I usually write, but I am suffering from a horrible disease known as writers block. I also have these new ideas swimming in my head and I want to start them. There have also been some weird questions I've gotten…like… "I thought Naraku and Onigumo were the same person…?"

……

Um, I'm not going to explain that one cause the hilarity of the question still gets me going. If you don't understand, then just think of them as two different people. XD

Anyways, as always, Read and Review please. It's not one of my best chapters, and I feel like it has a different tone to it…maybe I'll go back and change it later. Thanks to all for being so patient!


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